Ready to Ignite
by RaNdOmLeTtErShErE
Summary: Tessa is a waitress who helps a stranger. Joker is a stranger who frees a waitress.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: do not own anything DC related. Just the plot bunny and beautiful Tessa.**

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_~He who makes a beast out of himself, gets rid of the pain of being a man~_

_~Avenged Sevenfold~_

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Tessa Marlin was like a lot of people that lived in the narrows. She ran away from her home at the age of 15, crashing in a flop house with other runaways. Like others, she learned fairly quickly, that life was tough for a kid in The Narrows. It was even tougher for a kid who was cute and petite. Now fully grown, Tessa was only 5'3".By the end of her first month, Tessa had become a pretty competent fighter. She'd only gotten beat up during the first week. Once she realized it was better to attack first, her problems vanished.

One thing she was a natural at was going mostly unnoticed. Tessa was good at blending into the crowd. It had taken her a short amount of time and two broken fingers to learn how to lift wallets. Once she'd mastered that, life in the narrows had changed for her. She had found herself a new place to stay. It was a condemned building, a small office type. She had staked her claim and lived alone.

She was still technically a minor, for a few more months at least, so she had to lay low or get sent to the juvie house. That place was a nightmare. She'd rather live out on the streets, and had found a waitressing job to help supplement her hobby. She loved working the graveyard shift at the small Mom and Pop style diner. Tonight was, in fact, a work night.

She got up and used her supply of clean water to wash her face. She had removed the pipe from under the sink. She collected the "gray" water to use to flush the toilet. The building had very limited supplies. Like only electricity, and only sometimes. Tessa got dressed and left for the diner. The walk wasn't far, just over the edge of the 'Industrial' side of town. She walked into the diner, noting it was practically empty. Slow nights were the worst.

She sighed and headed to the back to the employee/kitchen area. She grabbed her apron and tied it on. "Hey Chuck." She greeted the slightly overweight cook. "How's it going tonight?" The man looked up at her and smiled. "It's slow tonight, babygirl." He winked, shamelessly flirting with her.

She smiled and headed back out to the service side. The other waitress was sitting at the counter, reading a magazine. Sheryl was exactly what you would expect to find for your waitress at a diner.

"I'm here Sheryl, you can head out early if you want." She said startling the woman. The older woman put her hand on her chest in surprise, then her face was all smiles."Thank you, Jesus. It's dead tonight. She jumped up and cashed out her till and started a fresh one for Tessa."It's all yours, sweetie, Earl has been the only person here in the last hour." She pointed to the old man in a booth.

He was a regular at the diner. He drank the free refills of coffee all night. Tessa was sure it was to hide from the chill outside. Even in summer, Gotham could get frigid at night."See ya." She told the other woman when she left. Tessa sighed and grabbed the coffee pot. She headed over to Earl.

She stepped up to his table and put on her million dollar smile. "Hey Earl, can I top you off?" she asked shaking the coffee pot old man looked up at her with filmy old eyes. "Tessa? Yea thanks." He said sliding the cup over to her."Tell ya what, I'm gonna bring you some pie, my treat." She said smiling.

She hated how fragile the old man looked. She turned and grabbed a generous slice of apple pie. She set the dessert in front of him with a clean fork."You always take good care of me Tessa." He said taking a small bite ."If I didn't, who would?" She joked. The night really was dragging along. She watched as Earl dozed in and out of consciousness. She hated that he had to go to such lengths to stay warm. But she wouldn't kick him out, ever.

She was pulled from her thought's by the bell above the door, looked at her watch as she greeted the customers. it was 9:30 pm. "Welcome to Pete's, sit wherever you'd like."She walked over passing out menus to the four teenagers. Forty-five minutes later, they had left. The mess was ridiculous, and they left her $1.50 tip. Teenagers were assholes. She cleaned the mess and made a fresh pot of coffee.

The next customer came and interrupted her conversation with Earl. "Duty calls." she told the old man, causing a chuckle from looked at her watch again, it was midnight. Her night was half over. She walked over to the group of four men, grabbing menus along the way.

"Evening boys, what can I get you to drink?" She asked as she passed out the menus. She had learned a longtime ago, not to make too much eye contact with the late crowd.

"Three coffees, black, and a strawberry milkshake." She wrote the drinks on her pad. "Be right back." She turned and walked away.

She moved to the machine to make the damned milkshakes. It was huge, and hard for her short self to muscle through. She did it though. She turned to the counter and placed the beautiful shake on the tray, pleased with how it turned out. She hurried around and set the tray on the table next to them.

"Who had coffee?" She asked the group, she passed out the coffee cups and filled them. She grabbed the milkshake and looked to the last guy and almost dropped the glass. The man was dressed rather flamboyantly, his suit a clash of many colors. But that wasn't what caused her to almost drop the ice cream. He was wearing make up.

No, not make up face paint, like a clown. She eyed the man and set the milkshake down."Here you go." She said. His eyes watched her, gauging her reaction to him. She grabbed her pad and pencil. "Have you had a chance to look at the menus?"One of the other men began to order.

She wrote down their orders. All cheeseburgers and fries. She turned back to the clown man. "And for you?" She asked, keeping her smile pleasant. It was no business of hers if he wanted to dress like a clown. Gotham was a strange place. Who was she to judge? His voice came out clear and a bit nasally.

"How's the pot roast?" He smacked his lips. Tessa responded with out thinking "Dry."

The man burst out into laugher. She smiled and waited for him to finish. Finally, his laugher subsided and he smiled at her. His tongue darted out and traced a vertical scar on his lower lip. "I'll have the, uh, _dry_ pot roast and mashed potatoes." She wrote the order and collected the menus. "We aren't super busy tonight, it shouldn't take too long." She said walking behind the counter to drop off their order.

She walked over to check on Earl but he'd fallen back asleep. She left him alone and moved to make more coffee. She took the almost empty pot and moved back to the table with the clown."Coffee?" she asked. The men nodded eagerly. She refilled the guys cups and returned.

Within minutes, Chuck yelled from the kitchen "Order up." Tessa walked over and loaded up her tray. with the three burger plates. She moved over and set them down. She hurried back to grab the pot roast and moved to deliver it. "Does everything look good?" She was a murmured round of yeses. She turned to the clown, "Do you want another shake?" She gestured to the empty glass. His eyes locked on hers and then he smiled.

That's when she noticed the red on his face wasn't all paint, it looked scarred."That would be wonderful, Doll." He said handing her the glass. She nodded and moved to make the shake. She returned to the table with the shake in one hand and a fresh pot of coffee. She dropped off the drink and refilled cups.

"Tessa?" She nearly jumped out of her skin. Earl was standing by the booth. She set the pot on the warmer and walked over to the old man, helping him put his coat on. "I'm gonna head out, what do I owe you?" He said digging for change.

"Don't worry about it, just stay safe and warm." She said walking him to the door. "See you tomorrow?" She asked.

"I'll be here." he said then left.

She cleaned off the table he'd been at and moved back to behind the counter, pushing the dirty dishes through the small hole and into the wash area. She jumped as a voice sounded behind her. "You always work so late?" She turned and looked at the clown from the table. He had walked up to the counter, sitting on one of the barstools."Yeah, I like the evening crowd." She told him, turning to fully face him.

"Your name's Tessa?" he asked. She pointed to the name tag on her shirt. His eyes shot down and then back up. "Contessa? That's a mouthful."

She leaned her hip against the counter, "That's why I go by Tessa." She said. She really looked at him now, he was odd. Yeah he had scars on his face, but where most people covered their scars, he accentuated his with red face paint.

"Like what you see?" he asked, pulling her from her thoughts.

She shrugged. "Maybe." His laughter was contagious. She giggled along for a second.

"I like you, No, uh, BS. Straight to the point."

She smirked at him. Maybe he was a nut job, that's why he was dressed like this. She looked at him again and asked, "You supposed to be a clown?"

"Why? You looking to join the circus?" He joked.

"It's rude to answer a question with another question." She said glaring at him now.

"Well, you know what they say, You can't teach an old clown new tricks." he looked at her now, smile gone.

"Not tricks, just basic manners." she said.

He burst into laughter again. He looked at the girl for a full minute, causing her to start to squirm a bit. He finally smiled again."You are a Hoot." he said then turned to his friends. "Gotta go boys, busy night ahead of us." She rung up their total. He reached to the taller of the three men and put his hand out. The man dug in his own pocket and handed the clown a wad of money.

He moved to where Tessa stood by, then handed her the wad of cash and what looked like a playing card. "See ya around." he said then left, men trailing behind him. Tessa sat down and unballed the bills, noticing a few of them were rather large. She was at a loss, their meal had been $46.83. The man had given her $487.00 and a joker card.

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**... well? o.0**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews! Here is the next chapter.**

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_~Started a stranger, __a lover in danger, _

_the edge of a knife. _

_The face of an angel, __the heart of a ghost,_

_ was it all a dream?~_

_~30 Seconds to Mars~_

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Tessa woke at the crack of noon. She made her way to the restroom and relieved her bladder. She washed her face and brushed her teeth. She looked at herself in the mirror. She was attractive, men seemed to like her. She thought her eyes were too large for her face, her cheeks still looked chubby for her slender build. She lined her eyes and used a small amount of mascara. The only part of her face she absolutely loved was her mouth. Her bottom lip was full and her top lip was fuller at the cupid's bow, it gave her a look like she had a permanent flirty pucker. She put on tinted lip gloss and decided she was ready. Same routine every morning (afternoon). She moved to get dressed and grabbed her money.

She hated putting the money in the bank, but she very well couldn't keep it here. It was her place but anyone could get in and take her prepared for the long walk into downtown Gotham. The trip wasn't too bad. She was used to walking, but today it was different. The urgency in everyone was a new level. She ignored the crowds and panicked voices and just made her way to the small bank. She walked up to the door and frowned. The door was locked and a piece of paper was taped to the door.

**_Dear Valued Customer,_**

**_Due to the imminent threat reported from The Joker, all of our Gotham branches are temporarily closed. We want our employees to be with their families in this time of crisis. All ATMs are still functional._**

**_Gotham Bank and Trust_**

Tessa was livid. She read the letter twice. Who the hell was The Joker? She sighed, maybe she should invest in a TV. She turned, she'd have to hold onto the cash for now. She started to walk back the way she came. The streets were a bit emptier than they should be this time of day. What had this Joker guy threatened? She saw a corner vendor down the street and headed that way. Her tummy growled at the thought of food. She stepped up and saw a smiling man.

"One hotdog, loaded, please. " The man started on her order and smiled at her.

"You aren't panicking?" he asked.

"About what?" She asked, clearly confused.

He chuckled, "You must live under a rock. The Joker, he said he was gonna attack the whole city. Told everyone to leave if they didn't want to play his game. Ferry seems the only safe way out." he said handing her the messy food.

"Ah, that's why the bank was closed. I live in the Narrows and don't own a TV." she explained her ignorance of the day's drama.

He grunted. She handed him a $10 bill and told him "Keep the change."

"Thanks, if you have somewhere safe to go, you should get there." He said as she walked away.

She shrugged, "Safe as anywhere else, thanks for the food and the news." She laughed and ate the delicious hot dog and thought about this guy, Joker, the whole walk home.

She wondered what would cause someone to terrorize a city. She got ready for work, the world didn't stop for anything. Unlike the damned banking system. She made her way to work and relieved Sheryl. Once again only Earl was there, and he didn't stay long, he left just before midnight. Tessa sat at the counter bored out of her mind. She'd already wiped down all the tables, twice.

"Chuck, let's close up. No one in here, no one is coming. Earl even left already." She pouted."Go on kid, lock it up behind you and I'll wait here 'til the morning crew gets here." The burly cook said from the kitchen.

"You sure?" She asked, already taking off her apron. The man chuckled, "Yea, I'll just take a nap." he explained. Tessa didn't have to be told twice. She hurried and closed it all up. She left and hurried down the dark road towards her place.

It was a creepy walk at this hour. Tessa kept her head down and kept moving. She had made it almost the entire way with out anything happening. She was about block from her place she saw a shadowy figure. It was obviously hurt, limping and stumbling. Tessa knew better than to help anyone in The Narrows, but she was nothing if not reckless.

She put her keys in her fist, the keys pushed past her small knuckles. The 'protection' would do a lot of damage but it might give her enough time to run if she needed to. She stepped closer to the figure. The person fell, and she could have swore he let loose a giggle. She stepped closer. "You okay?" she asked, gripping her makeshift weapon. She heard a groan.

"Just, uh, peachy, give me a hand?" the man asked.

She paused, "You gonna try to hurt me?" She asked back.

"It's, uh,_ rude_ to answer a question with a question."

Her eyebrows shot up to her hairline. Was this the clown man from last night? She relaxed slightly. "Just answer." she said smiling.

"If I was going to _hurt _you, would I _tell_ you?" He asked.

She thought for a second. "True, but I want to hear you say it. Promise me."

He laughed, "I Promise, I wont hurt you, tonight." He groaned at the end of the laugh.

"Good enough for me." She grabbed his hand and tugged him up. She tensed as he let out a groan. She tucked her smaller body under his shoulder, letting him lean on her. "You got a destination in mind?" She asked, looking at his face. The make up smeared, the white looking more gray, some spots almost gone. Blood still dribbled down his cheek from a gash.

"Uh, no." his voice fell at the end, dragging the 'o' sound out. Tessa groaned, knowing this would be a bad idea.

"You can crash at my place, it's not far." She said, leading him the last bit of the way to her home. She could feel his weight leaning more and more on her. "Don't pass out ok, I wont be able to carry you up the few steps." she almost begged. He chuckled, but didn't speak. They made it, barely.

She let him collapse on her mattress. He hissed in pain and then relaxed. She reached over and grabbed her little battery powered lantern/lamp. She looked at the severity of his face wound. He shouldn't be this woozy from that. She looked over him and noticed the growing dark spot on his lifted it and saw his shirt soaking up a lot of blood. Great. Lucky for Tessa, she knew all about basic first aid.

She went to the restroom and started to get the things she would need to fix him came back and opened the small container. She placed out what she would need and began to assess what she would need to do first. She decided to start at the top and work her way down. She wet the rag and moved to wipe the face wound clean. His hand grabbed her wrist.

"I have to clean this part, don't worry, I wont take off anymore than I need to." She reassured him. His dark eyes watched her for a second, then let her softly wiped off the gray and white paint. The wound on his face was a bit jagged. She reached into her kit. Pulling out an alcohol pad, she warned him. "This is gonna sting."

She cleaned the area as best as she could. He didn't even flinch. His eyes watched her. She pulled out the thread and a very sharp needle. "You've done this before?" He asked. His voice startling her.

"Yea." she said, threading the needle. "This may hurt, and will probably scar." She said.

He smirked, but didn't speak. She stitched his face, trying to keep them even. True he was no stranger to scars, but no need to make it worse than it needed to be. She finished his face and smiled. "Now the other wound. You need to help me take off your shirt." she said trying to hide the heat that crept up her neck and face.

"Tessa, it's only our second date." he tried to laugh, but groaned at the movement.

"Ha Ha, let's go, strip." She said.

"Now you're talking." He said, sitting up with her help. They removed his coat and vest and saw a 3 inch gash across his chest and a smaller knick below it.

"Good news, maybe just a few more stitches. I'm almost positive that you will survive." she said repeating the process of threading the needle. She watched as he laid back on the bed, she cleaned the area and began. Once stitched up, she covered the wound on his chest and looked at him. "What happened to your leg? You were limping pretty hard."

"Just a sprain, my little doctor, just need a bit of rest, and maybe an aspirin." He said.

"Is Tylenol ok?" She asked reaching for the kit.

"Sure." She handed him the pills and reached for a bottle of took the medicine and drank the entire bottle. "Thanks." He said, laying back with his eyes closed.

She sat there watching him. When he began to snore, she got up and changed into a sleep shirt and crawled into bed. It didn't take long for her to fall asleep, the adrenaline from all of the excitement finally gone.

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**To Be Continued...**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Little history in this Chapter. Thank you for the lovely reviews. :)**

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_~Since I was young, I've tasted sorrow on my tongue._

_and this sweet, sugar gun does not protect me.~_

_~KORN~_

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_Tessa had always been drawn to guys with extreme personalities. The nice guy next door never interested her. She like bad boys and wasn't ashamed of it. She had her first and only boyfriend at a very young age. She met him on her 13th birthday. _

_She grew up in a run down foster home. The other girls were always mean to her. She didn't understand why at the time, but she did now. She had always been a pretty child, and as she grew, she became a beautiful girl. She had dark , curly hair and very light gray eyes. _

_On her 13th birthday, she left the house and walked to the park down the street. She visited this place often when the weather was nice. She sat on one of the benches and started to read. She had become so engrossed in her book, she didn't notice the group of boys that began acting up across the trail from her seat._

_When she heard laughter, she looked up to see Parker and his group of lackeys. They always showed up at the park , but usually stayed to the other side of it. Tessa found herself watching the boys. Parker was obviously the leader of the small group. He was a natural show off and was always in trouble._

_He laughed again and then turned, like he knew he was being watched. He locked eyes with her and she looked away quickly. She hated that he'd caught her staring. He wasn't from her neighborhood, but everyone knew him well. He was a small time criminal in and out of the Juvie Center. But he'd be 18 soon, and then he'd have to be more careful. _

_ Tessa looked back and saw him walking towards her. She wanted the earth to open up and swallow her. He walked up to the bench and sat next to her, his leg touching hers. Tessa closed the book and looked over at him._

_"I know you, you stay over by Kurtwoods, right?" he asked grinning._

_"Yea." she said, "I know you too."_

_"What do you know?" he smiled at her mischievously._

_"I know you are Parker, and that you are probably bad news." She said blushing while he laughed, the sound so happy she couldn't help but smile._

_"Aren't you just adorable. Though, you don't know the half of it." he said still smiling. "You're Tessa right?" she was shocked. _

_"How did you know that?" She asked._

_"I've seen you around, you are cute, so I asked about you. Maybe too young though." he said. _

_"Today's my birthday, I'm 13 now." she wasn't sure why she felt like defending her age. _

_ "Happy Birthday, 13 huh? That is still a bit young." He teased._

_"Young for what?" The naive girl asked. She had no clue what she was getting herself watched as the boy leaned in closer. He reached up to her face, running his fingers along her cheek. _

_"Happy Birthday, Tessa." he said, then leaned in and kissed her. She hadn't been kissed before. The feeling was strange. It made her stomach feel weird, but a good weird. His lips pressed to hers, then she felt his tongue touch her lip. The shock allowed him to delve his tongue into her mouth. This made the weird feeling move lower than her stomach. _

_She matched his movements, enjoying the feeling spreading through her. Then he pulled away. She was breathless as he stood and walked away, joining his friends again She noticed they were all watching her. She stood and started walking back home, her lips feeling swollen, still tingling to the touch. _

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_At dinner, she sat silent. Her mind still on the kiss she had received. It was the only time someone had told her Happy Birthday. The woman who ran the home didn't believe in celebrating your birth. It was the sin of vanity. She picked at her dinner and as soon as they were dismissed she darted to her room._

_ After getting ready for bed, Tessa laid down and started to read again. It was the only reason Nicole was able to sneak up on her. The older girl walked up and shoved Tessa from the bed. _

_"What was that for?" She said as she stood up. She looked at Nicole. She was the home's bully, she was 16 and thought the world revolved around her._

_The blonde girl smirked "I heard you tried to kiss Parker. Funny, you're what? 13 right? You grow a small set of tits and think a guy like Parker would touch you? " she spat the venomous words._

_Tessa was mortified. "That's not what happened." She defended._

_Nicole interrupted, "Stay away from Parker, he doesn't want some prude like you." She stepped forward, a bony finger poking Tessa in the chest. Out of reflex, Tessa slapped the girls hand away. Nicole smiled "Now it's on." She said. _

_The girl tried to slap Tessa, but again reflex saved her. She sidestepped and the blonde's momentum caused the girl to become off balance, and Tessa shoved the girl towards the wall. The blood that blossomed from Nicole's nose was bright red. Nicole let out a huge scream. _

_"You Bitch. You'll pay for that." She turned and stormed off. Tessa already knew she was about to be punished for the whole incident. It wasn't the first time and probably wouldn't be the last. Mrs. Williams ,of course, didn't believe Tessa. The stone faced woman came into the room__ with the leather belt held in her hands. There was no arguing. Tessa had learned that lesson the first week she was here. __Tessa refused to let the tears fall when the belt hit her butt and back._

_Happy Fucking Birthday. _

_It had taken a full week for the pain to go away. That gave her plenty of time to think. She had to decide if she would leave Parker alone or do what she decision didn't take long, she was at the park the next day. She was reading her book, deciding she'd let fate decide if she should leave him alone or not. When he showed up, he headed straight for Tessa._

_"Hey where have you been?" He asked sitting next to looked at him and decided to be honest. _

_"Your girlfriend got me in trouble." _

_He laughed, "I don't have a girlfriend." _

_"Yeah, well, tell that to Nicole." she said frowning._

_"Nikki? She wishes she was my girl, but she's a homie hopper." he said._

_Tessa looked at him, "A what?" _

_He laughed again. "She sleeps around. She's too 'friendly' for me." _

_She smiled, Nicole's a tramp, the thought made her feel a bit better. "She didn't like that you kissed me, she told everyone that I tried to kiss you and you didn't like it. That I was too prude." Her face was burning._

_ He smiled, "Well, Nikki was wrong." He touched her face again. "I like my girls untouched." He kissed her. Tessa enjoyed every second of it. _

_From that day forward, she and Parker were inseparable. After a few months, she even left the group home and moved into his place. She and Parker fooled around, doing everything but having sex. After she turned 14, she lost her virginity to him. _

_The experience was painful. She wasn't sure what the big deal was, sex wasn't very enjoyable. Parker taught her a lot of things. Some she liked, Some she hated. She began to even help him do some bad things as well. She helped him hide guns, and stitched him up when he was hurt. Just before she turned 15, Tessa was hanging out with Parker and one of his friends. They were having fun all the way up to the moment that they weren't. __Parker's friend Michael made the comment that started the end._

_"Tessa, you've filled out nice." He said, staring at her chest._

_ Parker exploded out of his seat and started to beat the boy. Once he was satisfied, he turned on her. Sure, he'd hit her before, but never with a closed fist. The blow to her face made her vision blur. It was so unexpected. _

_She saw stars as her vision returned. Touching her face she could feel blood. She blacked out after the second blow. When she woke next, she was in a hospital. She half listened as the doctor told her she had a broken cheekbone, a broken nose, two fractured ribs. What hurt the most was she had lost the baby she didn't even know she was carrying. _

_When the hospital released her three days later, she packed up and left. She hitched her way to Gotham. _

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**I hate to only post flashback chapters, so I will post another chapter shortly to move the story along.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: It all goes a little crazy from here. **

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_~Story of my life, searching for the right, but it keeps avoiding me._

_Sorry in my soul, cause it seems like wrong really loves my company.~_

_~Rihanna~_

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Tessa was having the strangest dream. It felt so real. She felt a rough hand touching her. It ghosted over her ribs and along her spine. She moaned out loud and realized the hands touching her was real. She turned and saw dark eyes looking at her.

"Morning." The man said, his hand still touching her.

"What are you doing?" She asked, voice quiet.

"Watching you sleep. I got bored, _so_, I was seeing how long it would take for you to wake up. Honestly, I was hoping to get a bit further." he admitted with a frown as he moved his hand away.

She laughed. "How do you feel?"

"Great." he said.

She looked at him, his eyes locked on her. She had to know for sure. "Can I ask you something?" She stopped, "Never mind."

"Ask your question." He said flatly, the humor gone completely from his face.

She rolled onto her side and looked up at him. "Are you, um," She lowered her voice to almost a whisper, "The Joker?"

He was silent, then the bark of laugher that erupted from him made her jump. "Well, uh, _Yea_. I thought you would ask about my scars, or if I was gonna kill you." He said still laughing.

She glanced at the scars and seemed confused. He finally stopped laughing, "You got any food around here?"

"Mostly junk food snacks, if you want real food, I know a place that delivers here. Pizza okay?" She explained.

"Sounds good." He said, grabbing his coat from the floor. He reached inside and tossed a small phone to Tessa.

Tessa quickly dialed the number from memory. The gruff voice answered. "Hey Tony, It's Tessa, can I get my usual and a large pizza, with," she paused and looked at Joker.

"Everything on it." He said smiling.

"The works." she told him. She waited and Then replied. "Thanks, Tony." She ended the call and tossed the phone back to him.

She flopped back down on the bed and looked up at the ceiling. This was too surreal. His voice pulled her back to the present.

"So, this place is, uh, all yours?" He asked.

"Yea, its home, sweet home." She said turning to look at him. "Been here for a while."

"I like it." he said, looking around. He stretched, and Tessa couldn't help but wince when she saw his dark bruises on his ribcage.

"You need more Tylenol?" she asked, nodding towards his chest.

He chuckled, "No, Doll, you took good care of me." he turned to face her, "Your pisser work?" he asked suddenly.

She blushed, "Kind of." she explained her recycled water system.

He smiled, "That's smart, but I'll just use the window." He pointed, "Perks of being a guy." He winked at her and laughed as he moved to relieve himself.

She shook her head and made her way to the restroom her bladder full as well. She wasn't gonna squat over a window to piss. When she came back out, he was looking through her sketch book.

"You draw these?" He asked.

"Yea, I used to draw a lot, mostly at the park, but don't have a lot of time anymore." she said and moved to get dressed.

"Pity. It's good, kinda dark and gritty." he said still shifting through the pages.

"Thanks" she said as she pulled on a pair of leggings. The movement caught his attention.

"Don't get dressed on my account." he said, standing there still topless.

"The pizza should be here soon, I'm not going out in just a Tshirt." She explained.

She could hear his laughter follow her down the stairs. She stepped out into the chilly afternoon and waited. So many thoughts were moving through her head. Should she really be helping this guy? He was, after all, what the city labeled a terrorist. A voice in her head shot back, 'They labeled you a delinquent.' That was true. The familiar car pulling up had her pushing the thoughts away.

She walked up, "Hi, Tom." she said stepping up to the window.

"Hey Tessa, its 25$, plus tip." he said.

She smiled at the grumpy man, he hated driving here. "Keep it." She said handing him 40$.

"See you next time." He said and sped away.

Tessa hurried back into the building and up the stairs. She set the boxes on the make shift table she owned and smiled.

"Food's here." she said assuming he was in the restroom.

He opened the door and she was shocked. He'd washed all his face paint off. The only color on his face was the irritated stitches.

"You're, uh, staring." He said walking to the table.

She spoke before she could think. "You're gorgeous."

He laughed, "You flatter me,_ truly_." he said sitting at the table sounding almost bitter. He grabbed the larger box and started eating his pizza.

"Sorry, I just didn't expect-"

He cut her off. "What?"

She cut her eyes at him, "You seemed upset that I wiped away just a little of it last night. I didn't expect you to wash it all off." she finished the earlier statement.

He laughed, "Well, I couldn't let you get me completely naked last night. I'm, uh, not that kind of girl." He said laughing again. "It was only our second date after all." he added.

She started to argue that they hadn't been dating, deciding to just ignore the statement. She started to eat her calzone. She had caught his attention and he watched her.

"What did you get?" He asked.

"Calzone, best in the whole city." she said taking another bite.

He tossed the half full pizza box on the table and leaned towards her. "Let me try." he said grabbing a piece.

He ate the slice quickly, followed by another. And another. The box was quickly emptied.

"Hey, that was mine." she pouted.

He smiled and picked up the pizza box, "Here have a slice." he said.

She glared at him now, "I didn't want _pizza_, that is why I ordered _me_ the calzone." she said through her gritted teeth.

He shrugged and continued to eat his pizza. She was still a bit miffed when he spoke to her again. He smiled at her. "Guess, what? I think we just had our first spat. "

Her anger was now confusion. "What?"

He continued, "As a couple." he said laughing.

"We are not a couple." She said sighing.

He smiled, "Of course we are, look," he grabbed her hand, intertwining her fingers with his, "See, we fit." He held onto her hand.

She looked at him, then at their hands. "If you say so." She didn't want to think about the small jolt of pleasure that ran through her.

He smiled at her, and finished off his pizza. She sat there watching him. He hadn't let go of her hand yet and she was getting confused. She had only been in one relationship and wasn't sure how to handle this man.

He set the last half eaten slice down and looked at her. "What's on the agenda today? he asked. He moved his thumb along the top of hers.

She watched the small movement, "I'm off work tonight, so, whatever you want to do I guess."

"Oh goodie, It'll have to be, uh, low impact until the ribs heal." he said almost to himself.

"I know how that feels, maybe you should see a doctor?" she suggested. He looked at her, face calm and thoughtful.

"Nah, you fixed me up just fine. So, where exactly are we?" He asked changing the subject.

"On the edge of the Narrows, industrial side." she explained.

He eyes lit up, "Near the docs?"

She nodded. "About a mile and a half away."

"You, uh, up for an afternoon stroll?" He asked, releasing her hand.

She felt sad at the loss of contact, then shook herself out of that feeling. "Listen, Joker, I am glad you are feeling better, but you don't have to worry, I won't rat you out."

He looked at her like she'd lost her mind. When he spoke, his eyes sparkled, "You, uh, trying to dump me? You want to break my black little heart."

She laughed, "Not exactly, we aren't really dating. Are we? I only just met you, I don't really know you." She explained.

"I'm Joker, we met twice, and I like you. It's weird cause I don't like anyone. You are _different_," he paused, his tongue moving to touch his scars. "You're like me, I can tell."

"I'm not like you." She denied.

"Sure you are, sugar bear, you are more like me than you realize."

"Are you serious?"She asked.

"Rarely, but right now yes."

She sighed, "Fine, let's get dressed and go."

He laughed again, watching her moved to the hung up clothes at the far side of the room. She grabbed him a T-shirt. She tossed the clothing to him.

"Thanks," he pulled the shirt over his head. "See, look at us, we've shared food, now clothes, next maybe even make up!" He wiggled his eyebrows at her.

She laughed, "Not anytime soon."

She grabbed herself a clean shirt and socks. She quickly changed, feeling his eyes on her the entire time.

She shook her head and put on her shoes. She grabbed a bag and put Joker's bloody clothes in it. She handed him the bag, "They may be ruined."

He took the bag, shrugging. "I have extras." He said rummaging to grab a few knives. He stuffed them in pockets. He reached back into the bag, pulling out another knife.

She watched him as he looked at the blood red handle. It was beautiful. He held it up in front of her face. He pressed the small silver button on the side, causing the blade to shoot out.

Tessa's eyes were huge. He pressed the button again, retracting the blade. He pressed a latch that blocked the button. "Safety on." He said, handing her the knife.

"I don't want it." She said absolutely lying.

"It's a gift, for my girl." He winked placing the knife in her palm.

She wrapped her hands around it. "Thanks." She said.

She tucked the knife into her back pocket.

He walked over to the door and gestured for her to go first. "After you, Dear." he said.

She walked through the door wonder what was with all the pet names. She walked down the steps to the exit door. He pulled her to a stop and moved out first. Once he decided the coast was clear, he reached back into the doorway and grabbed her hand. He pulled her out and started moving towards the docks. She looked down at their hands, fingers intertwined. The sight made her tummy flip.

They walked for a few blocks before he broke the silence. "You didn't know who I was at the diner?" he asked, eyes on the road.

She smiled, "Nope, never heard of you until yesterday, my bank was closed, thanks to you." she said, sounding put out.

"You shouldn't use banks, they are full of dirty people, playing with dirty money."

"Well, my place isn't exactly safe to keep cash in, and some guy tipped me a generous amount the night before." She said.

He looked at her, "Makes sense, I like your place, feels like home." He said.

"It ain't much, but its mine for now." she said.

He chuckled, turning them down a street she didn't recognize. He walked them all the way up to a gray warehouse. It was utterly ordinary. The outside had no markings or signs. Not even a printed address. He stopped her at the door and unlocked it, stepping inside. She waited patiently until he returned. He pulled her inside and she was blind. There was no light anywhere. He pulled her along beside him.

"Stairs." he warned. They moved up the metal staircase and she could see a faint outline of a few doors. The rooms must have at least a small window in them. They walked to the last door to the left. Joker let go of her hand and unlocked the door. He turned to grab her and pushed her inside, following right behind her.

* * *

**... 0.o**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: So,it has come to my attention, that since I posted two chapters the other day, not everyone read chapter 3 lol, Don't get me wrong, you wont be lost with out it. I just thought it was funny... Moving right along...**

* * *

_~When I see her eyes, look into my eyes, _

_then I realize, that she can see inside my head.~_

_~Papa Roach~_

* * *

She stepped into the room, covering her eyes when he flipped the light switch on. She was blind again. "Damn it." She hissed. She slowly opened her eyes, letting them adjust to the sudden light. As her vision came back, she was shocked. The room was huge. It made my place look like a dump. He had a bed, not just a mattress on the floor. And to the right, there was a small couch and a TV.

"Make yourself at home, I'm gonna take a shower." He said. She turned to look at the door he walked to, jealous of his working plumbing. He stepped into the room closing the door. She could hear the water running in the other room. She would be taking a shower as well, she decided that instantly.

She walked over to the TV and grabbed the remote. She turned it on and flipped through the limited channels. The news had a large picture of Joker on it. She stopped and listened to the story.

_"Reports say that after the SWAT team arrived, the vigilante known as Batman showed himself. He fought the men, not allowing them to rescue the hostages. Police are unsure what caused the explosion, but two ferries evacuating Gotham citizens along with the Prewitt Building were attacked. The death toll is believed to be upwards of 600."_

Tessa turned off the TV, had Joker really blown up over 600 people? She sighed, why did she get involved with dangerous people? She pulled off her shoes, moving to lay on the couch. She must have been tired, she woke to the sound of laughter. It wasn't the innocent type of jovial laughter. It was full blown maniacal laughter, it sent a chill down her spine.

She sat up and looked towards her feet. He was there, watching the news. She moved to sit up on the couch next to him. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

"Is it true?" she asked.

"What? The explosions?" he asked still watching the TV, he changed to the next channel.

"Well that, and Batman attacking the SWAT team?" She asked.

He laughed again, "Oh yea, it happened, but what they don't know is, I had the hostages dressed as the clowns and my men dressed as the hostages." He chuckled again, finally looking at her. "It was magnificent."

She smiled. "That was pretty brilliant." She agreed reluctantly.

He turned to fully face her, looking very serious. "Thank you."

She smiled again, "Do you mind if I use your shower?" She asked.

"Oh Babycakes, what's mine is yours, with all things except one. The Batman." he said.

She looked at him, unable to tell if he was serious. She stood and moved to the bathroom, shutting the door behind herself. She moved over and started the shower. Hot, running water poured from it. She moaned aloud, turning it as hot as she could stand.

She got in and washed up quickly, using his shampoo and soap. She liked the smell of the soap, clean, not too strong. She rinsed off and stood under the hot water. It felt so good, she hated to get out. She turned the water off and grabbed the towel hanging by the shower and dried off. She wrapped it around herself and grabbed her clothes. They were clean when she put them on, they'd have to do.

She changed into them and started to dry her hair and froze. She didn't have anything to put in her hair. It was going to be so frizzy. She must have groaned out loud.

"You okay in there?" Joker asked through the door.

She opened the door, the steam billowing out in big puffs. He was sitting on the bed, she assumed waiting for her. "I didn't bring anything to put in my hair." she frowned, "It's going to frizz." She said.

He laughed and moved off of the bed. "Silly girls." He said walking past her and into the still steamy bathroom. He squatted down and opened a cabinet under the sink. When he stood back up, he was holding a bottle of baby oil.

He stepped over to stand in front of her. He poured a bit of the liquid into his hand and starting at the ends, he ran it through her hair. He worked it all the way to her scalp. He gently massaged her scalp with his calloused fingertips. Her head was tipped all the way back, enjoying the attention. She hadn't realized how close he'd gotten to her until his breath fanned across her cheek.

"Feel good?" he asked, his face touching the side of hers.

She jumped, not expecting him to be so close. "Yea, that was nice." she admitted.

She looked up at him their eyes locked. She felt her face heat his gaze too intense.

"You want to help me?" he asked.

"With what?" she asked, a bit scared.

"I need to get prettied up." he said smiling big, stretching the flesh colored scars on his face.

She looked at him confused. "You look fine." she said.

He laughed, and poked her lightly on the nose. "While I am glad you think so, I need my real face on." he said.

His words hit her, "You want me to paint your face?" she asked. That seemed kind of intimate.

He nodded, his eyes bright and excited. "I do your hair." he tugged a curl. "You do my make up." He grinned again.

"Okay , but you can't get mad if it's not right." she said

He pulled the tins from the drawer that was next to the sink. "You'll do fine." he said setting them down on the counter top. Tessa looked up at him, he was too damned tall for this. she turned and hopped up onto the counter top, and as her feet dangled above the floor, she was closer to eye level with him. She leaned forward and pulled him over to her, placing him between her parted knees.

This was crazy, she was about to paint up The Joker. She was slowly getting the picture of the man she'd been spending tie with. She grabbed the tin of black paint, opening it and pushing her fingertip into it slightly. She scooped up a small amount and started to color his eyes. He stood there, letting her touch him. She finished the first eye and moved to the other side. She tried to make them close to the same but not too perfect. She tried to remember what he looked like that first night.

She'd heard stories and seen a small bit of news coverage. Her gut told her to run far away. Didn't she learn her lesson the first time? Something wouldn't let her though. She smiled and cleaned her hand, moving to the white paint, she slathered it on his face, avoiding where she would put the red. No need for a pink-faced Joker. She giggled to herself. Joker looked at her, eyes dark. She hesitated with the stitches.

"I don't think this should be put on your stitches." she told him.

"It will be fine." he said

She reluctantly smeared the paint along the stitches. The small knots rough against her fingertips. She pulled her hand away, looking at his face.

"Don't forget the ears." he said.

She smiled, moving to paint his ears. This was so absurd, she looked at his face, it looked close enough. She cleaned the white from her hands and reached for the red. Now she felt nervous. She'd touch his scars. He didn't seem too put out at the idea. She opened the tin and dipped in two fingertips. She started at the top of his scar and slowly spread the paint across the oddly soft scars. She added more paint to her fingers and moved to the other side. They were uneven, she noticed. She moved the paint up to the widened grin.

Once she had the majority covered, she used a single finger to touch up the dips and crevasses of his scars. She dropped her hand and looked at him. She hadn't realized he was staring at her, watching her as she touched him. Her face turned almost as red as the paint on her hand.

"All done?" he asked. She nodded. "Do I look beautiful?"

"You look terrifyingly beautiful." she said. He stopped laughing and moved close to her face.

"You always know what to say to make a man feel good, don't ya?" he said. His face was close enough that she worried he'd get the paint on her own face.

She shrugged. "I try." she said causing him to lean back and laugh again.

She cleaned her hand as Joker moved to look in the mirror. She laughed as he rubbed his lips together like he'd applied lipstick. He made a popping sound. He turned back to her.

"You sure that was your first time?" He asked making it sound dirty. He moved back to stand between her knees.

She laughed and moved to push him away and scoot off the counter. Only, he didn't move and all she had accomplished was moving her body way to close to his. They were chest to chest and she felt off kilter.

"Do you like me with my make up too?" he asked. "Don't lie." he added.

She looked at him and sighed in defeat. "Yes, I liked you before I saw you, well," she paused deciding to use the words he'd used before "Naked." she smirked at him.

He laughed and reached up, poking her on the cheek. "I think we will get along just fine, sweets."

She shook her head as he moved away. She touched her cheek and wondered what was with all the pokes. She hopped off of the counter and watched him look at the sight of the paint she'd smeared across the stitches on his face.

"How did that happen?" she asked.

"Just a parting gift from the Batman." He said "He cut me, then dropped me off the side of a building. But he didn't let me die." He straightened up. "Honestly I think he likes me." He said. I couldn't help the shocked look on my face.

"He threw you off a building?" I asked.

"Yea, but he caught me, that's why my ankle was hurting. He left me hanging around for the SWAT team to cut down. But as usual, _they_ underestimated me." he said.

"So you got out before the building blew?" She asked.

"Yea, I had the building rigged to blow at 1:oo AM. Luckily, I wasn't in it. I was escaping my handcuffs in the parking lot. As I limped away I found the detonator I had dropped and, uh, blew the boats." He said laughing. The movement caused a bit of smudging and creasing but it just added to the effect.

His laughter was contagious, she laughed at his obvious good mood. He was very lucky though. Like the universe wanted him to stick around.

"What are your plans tonight?" She asked.

"No plan, gotta got to see how many men made it out. You know, regroup." he said turning to leave the bathroom.

"Oh, well, I guess I will go home." she said, trying to hide the disappointment she felt.

"Why?" he asked.

I looked at him, "I assumed you didn't want a tag-a-long." She explained.

He smiled, "What is it they say about assuming?" He asked holding back the chuckle that tried to come out.

"You want me to go with you?" she asked smiling.

"Yea." he said as if shed asked the dumbest question in the world.

She rolled her eyes and stepped towards the door. She felt the shock of her back hitting the wall. She wasn't hurt, but hadn't seen him move.

"Tessa, I know we are newly acquainted, but don't roll your eyes at me, hm. It, uh, _hurts_ my feelings. It might force me to cut them out and keep them in a jar on my shelf." He said, his hand on her neck, not squeezing, but holding it firm.

She could see the calm resolve in his eyes. He was serious. She mentally slapped herself, he had just admitted that he'd committed mass murder. She kept her body still, she knew what to do. "I'm sorry." she said trying to calm him.

"Apology accepted." he said letting her go and walking towards the door as if nothing had happened. She sighed in relief. He had strange mood swings. She put her shoes on as he grabbed a few items. He pulled on a new shirt, vest, and coat. Once they were both ready, they left the room, turning off the light and he locked the door to his room behind him.

"So this is like your house?" She asked.

He turned to look at her, his eyes sparkling in the dark. "It's my Ha-Ha-Hacienda." he said laughing uncontrollably.

She almost rolled her eyes at the joke, but caught herself, unsure if he'd be able to see it in the dark. She didn't want to risk it. They made it down the stairs and to the exit. He stopped abruptly, causing her to bump into his back. "Can you drive?" He asked.

"Not legally." she said.

"Oh, Baby, I think I may love you." he laughed tossing her the keys.

She barely caught them after that comment. The thought was scary as hell, but not unpleasant.

"Let's roll." he said leading them out of the door and to his car.

* * *

**I sit and type up this story, from a random idea I had, my brain keeps making it weirder. I am currently editing chapter 10...sheesh... oh well, must appease the muse... **


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: *warning* smut ahead...this is where it really starts to get weird...I apologize in advance :)**

* * *

_~Eyes closed when you scream out, and you keep me in with those hips,_

_While my teeth sink on those lips,_

_While your body's giving me life, and you suffocate on my kiss.~_

_~Machine Gun Kelly~_

* * *

Tessa got into the driver's seat and started the car. She was confused when Joker got into the back seat. She watched him in the rearview mirror.

"We get to play chauffer today." He said laughing.

She smiled and decided to play along. "Where to Mr. Joker?" in her best professional voice.

His eyes locked on hers in the mirror, a low growl rumbled through his chest. "Oh I like the sound of that. Be careful Tessa, I tend to get a bit, ah, crazy when I get excited."

When she heard those words, a jolt of electricity shot through her. She knew he was dangerous, she wondered what the hell was wrong with her. She didn't break eye contact, but didn't speak either.

"Head to the East side of the Industrial Park." He said, voice still edged with darkness.

"Yes, sir." she said, purposely pushing him. She was an idiot, she knew this, but she pushed anyway. She could hear his breathing, but he didn't move. She wasn't sure if it was a good thing or not. She watched a small tremor run through him, then he spoke. "Get there."

She drove like a demon, speeding the entire way. She kept quiet, not sure if she wanted to push him while she was driving. She may be an idiot attracted to dangerous men, but she wasn't stupid.

"Turn right up here, it's the gravel turn-in." he said, his voice a bit closer to normal, for him. He laughed as she jumped at the sound of his voice. She took the laugher as a good sign.

She drove for another mile on the gravel road when he said. "Left up here, the last building."

She turned left and drove to the end of the road. The building on the left was larger than where he lived. She pulled up into the driveway and parked turning off the car. Joker was out of the car and had her door open. She moved to get out, but he had other ideas. He dove into the front seat, pushing her back against the full front seat. She felt the air pushed from her chest as his body landed on top of her. He was nose to nose with her.

"Not that I wouldn't enjoy it, but I don't think our, uh, _relationship_ is ready for you to _poke_ that proverbial bear." his mouth brushed hers as he spoke.

She felt like she was on fire. His body hot above hers. The excitement buzzing in her head, causing her thoughts to scatter. Her hormones in charge, she pushed her face forward, talking against his mouth. "Yes sir, Mr. Joker."

His body left hers in a flash. He pulled her out of the car and hoisted her up and over one shoulder. She was startled and let out an involuntary squeak. He groaned at the sound, the hand holding her at the thigh tightened. He kicked the car door closed, and marched into the building. He moved past the small group of men setting at a table, talking.

"Boss?" one man said.

"Later." her growled, not slowing his pace. He moved towards a door into a smaller room. He slammed the door, moving towards a small couch. Tessa felt dizzy as he dropped her onto it.

She moved her hair out of her face and looked up at him. He was removing his coat, and suit jacket. She smirked, the clothes looked brand new, he did have plenty of extras. He pulled his tie off, looked at it, then tossed it behind him. He reached for her, grabbing both of her hands. He turned her body around and put her hands, palm down, onto a desk. He pushed her forward gently, until her palms and forearms were flat against the cold wood of the desk. Tessa could feel her body trembling. He moved back from her, she started to turn, but his voice stopped her.

"Hold them there." his voice was different. She turned her head to look at him but he spoke again. "Eyes forward."

She snapped her head back and looked straight ahead. She was unsure what he was up to but she wanted to find out desperately. The sane part of her was protesting. She hardly knew him, he was The Joker. This was wrong. The voice was silenced when his hand pulled her hair from around her shoulder. The hand trailed down her side and along her ribs.

"You scared?" he asked softly.

She decided to answer honestly. "A little."

"Good." he said.

All she could hear was movement behind her, she wanted to turn and look so bad, but she'd played a similar game before. With Parker, they never ended well, but this time she was enjoying it, so far. She felt a hand move along her side again. Bare fingers touched her bare skin. She bit her lip to hold in the whimper. The hand stilled at the sound, almost causing her to turn around. Then in a swift movement, her leggings had been pulled down. The cold air of the small room touched her hot skin. She felt the goose bumps erupt. She could feel the blush grow on her chest and face, here she was half naked, bent over in front of a man wearing face paint.

Almost like he'd heard her thoughts, his hand came down on her ass. She heard the sound before the pain was felt. The impact rocked her forward slightly. She let out a small yelp, then a small whimper as he rubbed the spot softly. He was suddenly leaned over her, his bare chest against her covered back. The T-shirt not holding back the heat from his body.

"Your skin marks so pretty." he said, his mouth by her ear. He moved and slid her panties down her legs to meet her leggings, that were caught at her ankles. His hand gripped her ass, kneading the flesh. She felt mortified. She should not be doing this, but she could not get her limbs to obey. She jumped slightly at the feel of cold metal. She swallowed thickly at the realization he had pulled a knife on her. It brushed her skin then a quick movement causing her shirt to fall away.

She shuddered as he laid the cold metal against her hot flesh. The cold almost burned. A small flick and she felt a sting and them warm liquid near her ribs. She hissed at the sensation. The cold moved down around her waist, then along the top of her ass, down to the small of her back. another quick movement and she felt the knife nick her, the blood starting to pool along her spine.

She was trembling so hard, she thought she'd pass out. The feeling of a hot wet tongue moved along her spine. She moaned aloud, not trying to hold back. Joker moved quickly, flipping her around. He kissed her, she moaned at the strange taste of grease paint and blood mixed into the kiss.

His mouth devoured hers, His tongue dominating hers with practiced ease. The scars felt surprisingly soft against her face. He grabbed her thighs, lifting her onto the desk. She gasped as the still tender hand print on her ass touched the now warm top of the desk. He pulled the tattered pieces of her shirt off as she kicked off her shoes allowing her to slide her leggings completely off.

He unclasped her bra and slid it from her, tossing it behind him. He moved to bite and kiss down her neck, then her chest. Bites and squeezes tiptoeing the line of pleasure/pain. He pulled a nipple into his mouth and she reached up, tugging his hair hard. He hummed and then bit her hard.

She moaned as he licked across the slightly bleeding bite mark. She needed him, she needed more.

"Joker, please." she begged.

"Ah, ah, ah." he lightly scolded her.

She was confused at first, but caught on fairly quick. "Mr. Joker, Please." she said with no hesitation.

He moved to grip her waist. "Please, what?" he asked, eyes dark.

She paused, not wanting to answer wrong. She wanted him, but he was in charge here. She looked into his eyes and smile. "Please, sir, take what's yours." She said.

He growled and pulled her to his chest. He kissed her. As his tongue pushed into her mouth, he entered her body. The quick intrusion was almost painful, it had been so long since she'd had sex. The wait had been worth it.

Joker was amazing, his hips pushing her still tingling backside into the desk. His hands spreading the quickly cooling smudges of blood over them. His mouth demanding her soul with his kiss. His hands moved up into her curls, breaking their kiss with a sharp tug. Her neck, now exposed, was his new target. He kissed and bit along her neck and shoulder. That pleasure/pain mixed with the steady rhythm of his hips pushed her over that edge and into the most intense orgasm she'd ever experienced.

The spasms of her climax, causing him to growl into the last bite on her shoulder. She felt her skin break as he rode his own release out inside her. He held her to his sweaty body as they both came down from their high and back to earth.

He moved back, handing her the discarded panties and leggings. She searched, and final found her bra. She picked up her shirt. She stood in her bra and leggings frowning at the shredded mess. He threw his under shirt at her. A white tank top.

"Gotta cover up, my guys aren't know for their good behavior." he said.

They got dressed and moved to the door. Tessa stopped him.

She looked at him, "Your paint's smudged." She said

He chuckled "Yeah, I bet it is." he said.

They walked out into the bigger room. Tessa felt instantly uncomfortable. All eyes were on her.

Joker paid no mind, "Glad some of you made it." He said.

"What's next boss?" one of the guys said, their eyes finally back on Joker.

"Not sure yet, but we have to, _uh_, make it good. We will start recruiting soon." he looked back at Tessa and tried to hide a smile. "Take the night off boys." he said, dismissing the men.

They scrambled to leave. Joker moved to the larger part of the room and sat on a sofa in front of a TV. He turned on the set and patted the seat next to him. Tessa moved quickly and sat down. He flipped through the channels until he found what he was looking for.

_"Today Commissioner Gordon held a press conference, announcing the murder of 5 people, including our own D.A. Harvey Dent, by the vigilante known as Batman."_

"Wrong!" Joker scoffed, interrupting the broadcast.

_"The city's official stance on The Batman, is to arrest on sight. This was all following the escape of the mass murderer known as The Joker. The situation has people wondering are the two working together?"_

The Joker switched off the TV and turned to look at Tessa_. _

_"_I told Batman, they'd all turn on him at the first opportunity." he laughed.

"People are fickle, judgmental assholes." She said turning away from him. She looked up and noticed her reflection in the now black TV screen. "Holy shit, you didn't tell me I had your face paint all over me." She rubbed at her face, the smudges of red and smears of white.

He was laughing now, "Looks good on you." he said between chuckles.

"No wonder your guys were looking at me funny." she pouted.

That caused the laughter to start up again. "Yea, sweet cheeks, That's why. Not the fact you'd just had very loud sex with their psychotic boss in the other room." he was almost in tears with laughter.

She cut her eyes over to him, but refrained from rolling them. He calmed himself, pulling her closer to him. He kissed her, a loud sloppy wet kiss on the cheek. "We are gonna have so much fun together, I can tell." He said poking her forehead.

She sighed, "Is there a restroom, I need to wash may face." She said.

He pointed to the left of them and watched her walk away. She washed as much as she could off of her face, considering there were no wash rags and only cold water.

She stepped out and saw Joker pacing the room. He seemed to be deep in thought. She watched him, his walk was different. Like he had a strange tick, maybe it was something that made him think clearer. Her stomach growled and she placed a hand on it, like it would muffle the sound. Joker looked up from his pacing, smiling at her as if he'd forgotten she was there.

"Let's go eat hmm?" he said, almost making it sound like a question.

He grabbed his coat and looked over at her. He moved quickly to what looked like a closet. He was rummaging and then turned and tossed her a dark green hoodie.

"Thanks." she said, pulling the fabric over her head. The rough fabric scraped along her bite mark. The pain caused her to hiss.

He watched her, eyes hard to read. She pulled her hair through and turned to look at him. He grunted and started towards the door. They walked out to the car and she was surprised that he moved to the drivers seat. She slid into the passenger side and closed the door.

He smiled at her and pulled her closer to the middle of the seat. "Do you like _I-_talian?" he asked as he sped out of the lot.

* * *

**well... 0.o sorry, not sorry muahahahaha**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: my mind is fucked up... here we go... more smut *sigh* ;)**

* * *

_~Can't you help me as I'm starting to burn,_

_ too many doses and I'm starting to get an attraction.~_

_~Avenged Sevenfold~_

* * *

They pulled up to a small hole in the wall place. Tessa had watched him the entire drive, he wasn't able to stay still. He was fidgeting. He turned to look at her, his tongue darted out to lick along the scar on his bottom lip.

Tessa spoke first, "This place is pretty public." It wasn't a question really.

"You afraid to be seen with me?" He asked.

"Nope, if the cops show, I'll just tell them you kidnapped me." He burst into laugher and got out of the car. Tessa got out and walked up to him. He moved up to a side door on the small building and knocked on the metal door. The small click was the only warning that the door was opening. Tessa couldn't see who was at the door.

Joker smiled, "Miss me?"

A small older woman stepped out and hugged him. It was strange to see. She had to be in her late 60's. She smiled at him, "Come in it's cold out there." she tugged his arm.

He turned to Tessa and the old woman followed suit. Her eyes grew large and she smiled broadly. "You brought a date?"

Tessa blushed at the declaration. Joker smiled, "Yeah, can we get a _private_ table?" he asked.

"Anything for you, bambino." she pulled them both into the building. The small woman walked them back, through the kitchen area up into a secluded booth.

"Sit, I will bring you the usual." She said walking away.

"Who is that?" Tessa asked as she scooted into the booth.

"That, is, Lenora. I helped her with a little problem she was having with a thug." He said. Tessa waited for more. Joker sighed and continued. "Her and her late husband couldn't afford the, uh, _protection_ he tried to sell them. So I carved a smile into his face and strung him up at the end of the block." He said like it was nothing.

"Oh, so you're like honorary family know?" She asked.

He thought about it for a second. "Something like that." He said.

Tessa was quiet. She mulled over what he had just told her. Point blank, murder. No accidental bystander, out right murder. Though the guy sounded like a creep. She hated that it didn't bother her more. She was gnawing her bottom lip when the small woman came back in with a bottle of wine and two glasses. She set them on the table and patted Joker's paint and blood covered hand.

"Order is in the kitchen." She hurried away and left them alone.

Joker poured out the wine and started drinking his glass right away. Tessa eyed the glass, she wasn't a drinker. She didn't even know if she liked wine. She picked up the glass and too a small sip. It wasn't bad, like grape juice but left a dry taste behind. Thankfully, the more you drank, the better it tasted. She had finished her glass fairly quick and Joker poured another.

"Take it slow. If you want to get drunk? There are easier ways." he said amused.

"I don't drink, usually." Tessa said.

"Sure doll, whatever you say." he was laughing now.

Before she could retort, the small woman came in with a large tray of food. She admired the woman's strength. Being a waitress herself, the tray looked impossibly heavy. Lenora set the food out on the table and looked to make sure everything was right. "Enjoy." she said shooting a wink at Tessa.

The food smelled amazing. She watched as Joker grabbed a plate and set it in front of her and then grabbed his own. He'd given her a plate of linguini. She started to eat and quickly finished her plate. The food was amazing. She pushed the empty plate away and finished her second glass of wine.

Joker ate steadily, finishing off 3 full plates of food. Tessa wondered how fast his metabolism had to be to not get fat. She was almost finished with her third glass of wine. Joker sat back and rubbed his belly.

"That hit the spot." he said.

Tessa laughed, she may be a bit drunk. Joker looked at her and grabbed the bottle of wine. He poured himself a second glass and poured the last bit into hers. She smiled and drank it in one big gulp.

Joker watched her, Tessa squirmed under his gaze. She could feel heat on her cheeks. Joker said nothing.

"Are you finally full?" She asked.

"Mmhmm." he said

"You are a pig." she said laughing.

"Well, my drunk friend, there is no need to watch my girlish figure." He said patting his belly.

"I think I am." she said absently.

"What?"

"Drunk." she said. "Were you trying to get me drunk?" She cut her eyes to his.

"Maybe," he said standing up. "Maybe not."

He pulled out a wad of cash and left it in the table.

"Let's go home." he said as he pulled her to her feet.

When she stood, she swayed lightly on her feet. Joker held her steady as they left the same way they'd come in. Tessa slid into the car and started to buckle up.

"Oh no, you're driving." he said.

She looked at him, "What?"

He laughed "I don't drink and drive." He said.

She laughed, "I drank more than you, and I'm tinier." she argued.

He shrugged and pushed her over. "I warned you to take it easy."

She slid over to the drivers seat and put her hand out for the keys. He placed them in her hand and got into the car.

She started the car and pulled out of the parking lot. She was proud at how well she was driving. She'd never done this drunk before. Joker's voice broke her concentration.

"Tessa, drive please." he said

"I am driving."

"Like a little old lady. What happened to the driving from earlier?" He said grabbing her knee and pushing her foot down on the accelerator. The car jerked forward and they were flying.

Any time she started to slow, he pushed again. They ended up flying through Gotham at 95 MPH. They were back at his place in record time and she felt very dizzy now. She parked the car back where it had been that morning and looked over at him. He grabbed the keys from the ignition and got out of the car, starting towards the door. Tessa followed and was sure to slam the car door very hard before following him.

Joker turned to look at her. "Don't act like a baby." He said, turning towards the door again. He unlocked it and stepped inside. Tessa followed, making sure to keep the frown on her face. She couldn't see anything. She ran her hand along the wall, there had to be a light switch or something here.

"Tessa." he called, almost sing-song. She frowned harder.

"I can't see anything." She pouted.

"Just come upstairs, and quit pouting." he said.

She walked towards his voice, she found the stairs, with her toe. She hobbled up the steps without falling. She turned left at the top and made her way to the room they'd been in before.

She stepped inside. The lights were off in the room but a line of light came through under the bathroom door. She could hear the shower running.

She kicked off her shoes and removed the hoodie. She sat on the bed, her eyelids feeling heavy. She decided to close them for just a second.

* * *

A hot wet kiss woke her. She opened her eyes to see a completely clean faced Joker looking down at her.

"No more wine for you sleepy head." he said against her mouth. Without thinking, she kissed him again. She traced his lip with her tongue and plunged into his mouth. He groaned into the kiss.

Tessa was enjoying herself, but it was, different. She wasn't sure how to handle herself. It was all pleasant, but too soft. Too controlled. She liked the aggressive Joker.

He moved to her neck and nipped at the still tender skin, sending little shocks straight between her legs. He froze when she let out a small whimper.

"Why'd you stop?" She asked feeling breathless.

"I like when you make those noises, I want to hear more of them. But, I'm, _trying_ to be nice this time. " he said, sounding like he spoke through clenched teeth.

She smiled at him. "That is probably the sweetest and strangest thing I have ever heard." She said. "I like when you make me hurt. As long as it's with the pleasure, I can handle myself." she said.

"You may regret letting me know that." He was everywhere all at once.

She felt on fire with the pleasurable shocks and the painful jolts. He moved and let his towel drop. Tessa looked at him, he had a plethora of scars, over a nicely toned body. She moved further onto the bed and stripped down to nothing. She leaned back, propped on her elbows. She felt him move closer to her.

Joker looked her over, her skin, up until today had been unmarred. His hands moved up her body, all over, pinching and slapping the exposed flesh. He was delighted in the almost instant red marks.

"You have such perfect skin. Only marked by me." He closed his eyes for a second. When his eyes opened, and locked wit hers, she felt a jolt of fear, mixed beautifully with excitement.

"I will ruin you." he warned her.

She kept her eyes on him. When he didn't speak anymore she decided to push him. Maybe she was nuts, maybe it was the wine talking. "I am your's to ruin." she said.

His eyes went cold, his face very serious as he reached over and pulled her knife from the pocket on her discarded pants. He flipped the safety off and ejected the blade.

He moved his body between her thighs. He pressed his cock slowly into her body. She kept her eyes on his. When he was fully inside her, he pressed the knife to her chest. He slowly cut along her skin, slowly moving inside her at the same time. Long slow strokes of both the knife and his erection.

She moaned in pain, or pleasure, it was hard to tell. She felt the sharp cut and the aching throb, the two sensations with the help of the wine sent her spiraling into her second orgasm of the day. Joker dropped the knife and looked down at his handy work. Just over her heart was a jagged and beautiful 'J'.

He kissed her, and started pumping himself into her with fast sharp movements. The small moans and squeaks she made were magical.

Tessa looked at him, his chest covered in her blood, it was oddly erotic. She touched the mark on her chest, still bleeding. She traced the wound. Her fingers outlined the letter 'J' in pain. Joker slowed his movements when he saw that look in her eye, she looked predatory. He wanted this to last, see where she'd take it. He sat up, still deep inside her, his movements slow and teasing. He watched as she looked at them, both sticky with drying blood and smiled. She grabbed the knife he'd tossed to the bed and reached for him.

He leaned forward, cock still twitching inside her. She put one hand on the back of his neck and the other traced the knife down his chest. His gaze never left her face. He wanted to see what her eyes looked like when she decided what she would do. He hissed in pleasure as she carves a small T into the flesh of his chest. Close to where Batman had cut him. He smiled at the fact she didn't touch those marks. They were special, too. He rocked his hips into her, she gasped. He sat back up and pulled her with him. Her body slid even closer.

He rocked his hips and pulled her down on him. The brutal pace was perfect. He felt close. His eyes shot open in surprise when she poked the wound on his chest with her fingers, causing more blood to flow. Tessa moved on pure instinct. She felt euphoric, the high of endorphins and wine, she moved her tiny fingers through the blood and then painted a big smile across his face. He nearly laughed at the gesture, until she did the same to herself.

Seeing the bloody smile across her face, painted with his own blood was the final straw. He pushed her into the bed, one hand around her neck, as he fucked her. This was what she wanted, him unrestrained. He was brutal and lost in the entire picture. His mouth devoured her, until he violently hit that point and finished inside her with a growl.

"Fuck, Tessa." was all he could say.

* * *

**... I ... am ... crazy ... 0.o**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: yea...**

* * *

_~"No one has to know what we do."_

_ His hands are in my hair, his clothes are in my room._

_ And his voice is a familiar sound, "Nothing lasts forever."_

_ But this is getting good now.~_

_~Taylor Swift~_

* * *

Tessa woke up in an unfamiliar room. It took a few moments to remember she was at Joker's place. She sat up and hissed. Her body was achy all over. She moved to the bathroom and relieved her bladder. She made the mistake of looking at herself in the mirror.

Her hair was a mess. She was covered in dried flakey blood. She moved into the shower and scrubbed herself clean. She got out and got redressed. Joker was nowhere to be found. Tessa decided to head home and get ready for work.

She wanted to leave Joker a note, but couldn't find any paper. She decide to go old fashioned and left him a quick note on the mirror. She used his red grease paint, the closest thing to lipstick.

_~Gotta work XoXo~_

She looked at the small message. It was cheesy but she had a feeling that he would like it_. _She moved back into the room, grabbing her shoes. Her entire body was sore, protesting all the movements she made. She smiled at the dull aches. She was about to leave when she saw her knife. She smiled as she put the 'safety' back on and slid it into her pocket.

The walk home was quicker than she thought it would be. She hurried up and started getting ready for work. After she was dressed in clean clothes and her hair fixed, she checked the time. She had a couple of hours before she had to leave. She dressed the 'J' on her chest, it was crusted over in blood. She decided to waste the time drawing. She grabbed her sketch book and flopped onto her drawing spot. The over stuffed pillows were comforting and she leaned into them, starting to draw.

By the time she left for work, she had a decent start on a picture of Joker. She was adding the details that made him so different. She put the book over on her shelf and started out for work. The walk was relaxing. She felt better than she had in a while. She refused to let her head begin to make her worry over yesterday.

* * *

Apparently, the mass hysteria over the last few days had died down. The diner was full and busy that night. Tessa was relieved when the crowd thinned out a bit around midnight. Earl hadn't showed and she was a bit worried. She couldn't dwell on that. She stayed busy with the drinkers that came in around 2:00AM.

By the time her shift ended, Tessa was exhausted. She cashed out her till and walked home. The sun was just starting to rise, and she was bleary eyed. She found her way into her bed, barely got her shoes and pants off before she was asleep.

She was having that dream again, the rough hands kneading along her body. She relaxed into the feeling, not wanting to wake up. Her eyes shot open when the rough hands pushed a finger into her body and a sharp sting of teeth caught her shoulder.

Her body arched back, on reflex. A scratchy voice spoke into her ear.

"I got a bit further this time." He said and nipped her earlobe.

"Joker? What are you doing here?" She asked, trying to fight the feelings his hand was bringing her, not stopping its slow movements inside her.

"I got your, uh, _love _note." he said.

She knew he'd like it. It carried on his delusion of their relationship. She was about to reply when he stopped her, his thumb joining the party, rubbing her clit. Instead of a smart assed comment, a moan came out. He hummed his delight in her ear. All to quickly, she came hard against his hand. He relaxed his hold on her body enough that she turned to face him. She smiled at his freshly painted face.

"Good Morning." she said.

"Afternoon _actually_." He said chuckling.

"Not that I didn't enjoy the amazing wake up, but what are you doing here?" She asked, stifling her yawn.

"I got home last night and you were gone. I felt.." he paused, brows furrowed for a second. "_not_ right. I was about to come find you, then I saw your _Love_ Note."

"Mhm?" she urged him to continue.

"I decided to wait and wake you up with food." he said.

She perked up, "Food? What did you bring?" her stomach growled at the thought of eating.

"Nothing fancy, doughnuts and coffee." He said getting off the bed to grab the cup and bag.

She sat up and smiled. "A clown after my own heart." she said stretching her slightly sore muscles.

He laughed and handed her the treats. She devoured it. Joker watched her amused. With the now empty cup and bag, she decided to get up and relieve her full bladder. She came back out and sat at the small table. "Thanks for breakfast." She said.

"Don't mention it," he said watching her. "Really." he added causing her to smile.

"How long are you staying?" she asked.

"Not long, gotta take care of some business." He said licking at his scar.

"Anything I need to worry about?" she asked half joking.

His face got serious for a second, then returned to the emotionless mask again. "No." he said lightly.

"Okay." she said hopping up to change clothes. She smelled like the diner and needed a change. She frowned at her closet, she'd have to do laundry soon. She changed quickly and moved back to the table.

"I want to pick you up from work tonight." he said.

That surprised her, "Sure." she told him.

"Good, I'll, uh, see you then." he got up to leave, making it to the doorway and paused. He turned back and walked over to Tessa, pulling her up to stand. He kissed her. It was a mild kiss compared to their usual kisses. But it rocked her down to her soul.

He moved away and without saying anything else left her there staring at the doorway. She shook her head and decided to draw a bit more. She had to finally stop drawing, her fingers feeling stiff. She got up and stretched, and began her routine for getting ready to work.

She followed the same route to work and smiled at the somewhat busy night. The small parking lot was full. The night went faster and tips were usually better when they were busy. She went inside and got right to work. Sure enough the first half of the night was over before she knew it. The crowd started to thin and she was happy to only have three tables to deal with.

She felt her face crack into a huge grin when Earl made his way in. "Missed you last night." she said setting a cup in front of him, filling it with hot coffee.

Earl smiled up at her. "Tessa, you worry too much." he said smiling.

She smiled back, "Let me know if you need anything." she said.

The three tables changed to one. Then they finally left. Tessa used the rest of the night to clean and chat with Earl. The man was chatty tonight.

Tessa sat with him. "So, you had a date huh?" she said, barely believing it.

"Yep, I might be old, but I still got it." he said winking at her. She laughed at his playful banter. "What about you?" he asked, eyes on a fading love bite.

"Earl, a lady doesn't talk about those things." she winked back.

By 2:00AM the drunk crowd showed. Tessa barely survived that one. She was exhausted by the time her replacements showed up. She was out of the door before anyone could say more than 'Hi' to her.

She walked out and towards the parking lot. It was still slightly dark, but she found his car parked at the furthest part of the small lot. She walked over and tapped on the window.

"Give a girl a ride?" she asked.

"Get in Sweets." he said smiling as he started the car. She got in and barely had the door closed before he sped away.

She turned herself to face him. "How was your night?" She asked.

"_Busy_." he said watching her as she stretched her back, wincing near the end. "You , uh, hurt?" he asked.

She smiled, "No just a little sore. I've had a busy week." she said trying not to blush. She watched as he pulled up to his place. He parked the car and got out. She followed his lead. She stopped behind him.

He turned to face her. "Do you trust me?" he asked grinning like a madman.

"Not really." she said. She'd learned he enjoyed her honesty.

"Smart girl. I have a surprise for you, so close your eyes." he said.

She looked at him, then closed her eyes. She heard him step away and into the building. She was tempted to look, but she wouldn't put it past him to be standing there waiting for her to cheat. She heard his steps bringing him back to her.

"Keep them closed." he said, then lifted her up over his shoulder. She had let out an embarrassing squeak. He swatted her on the butt. "None of that." he paused, then added, "yet."

She felt her face heat, but she kept her eyes closed. She felt them going up the steps, hanging like this was messing up her equilibrium. She felt almost dizzy. Finally he set her down. She could feel herself sway, blood draining back into her body.

He opened a door and pushed her inside. "Okay open 'em." he said.

She opened her eyes and looked around. They were in a bedroom. Her confusion was written on her face. She looked around and saw her clothes hanging in a small closet. Her books and he'd even grabbed her shitty makeshift table.

She turned to look at him. "What is all of this?" she asked.

He smiled. "It's your room." he said.

"You asking me to move in with you?" she said.

"It's safer than your other place." He said.

She was shocked. "Three dates and you want to be roomies with me?" she joked.

He shrugged. "I'm nothing if not impulsive." He said, as if it explained everything. "you aren't scared are you?" he asked.

"Of what?" she asked, deeply confused.

"That you'll fall deeply in love with me, beg me to let you join in on the mayhem." he said, then burst into maniacal laughter.

"No." she said.

"No? You aren't scared or you don't want to join me in having fun?" he asked.

"I'm not scared, I don't love you, and I don't want to work for you." she said.

"That's what I love about you kiddo, you continually surprise me." he said flicking the end of her nose.

"Oh, so _you_ love _me_?" she teased.

His laughter stopped. She looked up at him. "Love is the brains reaction to chemicals being released. I know I am infatuated, maybe even obsessed with you." he confessed.

"That's crazy, you barely even know me." she said, her mouth dry.

He looked at her for a second. "I know you quite, uh, _intimately_." He move a hand to her chest, pushing against the 'J' on her. "I marked you. I drew your blood and you live to tell the tale. Only one other person in Gotham can boast that honor." he said.

She took a guess. "Batman?"

"My girl got it in one." he said.

She sighed, "Fine, whatever you want. But I need to get a car, I don't want to add anther mile and a half to my walk to work." She said.

"Deal!" he said, pulling her closer, "Kiss on it?"

She laughed and then kissed him. She'd stopped caring about the face paint. It added a strange taste to their kisses.

She pulled away. "I'm exhausted, I'm going to bed." she said.

"Let's go." he said pulling her to her brand new bed.

* * *

**... I uh...well...I dunno...**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: this chapter is smut and filler... enjoy, or don't, but read it either way!**

* * *

_~I thank you for the hole you dug in me,_

_Filled it with cement,_

_ Sunk me in your sea,_

_ I thank you for being so obscene.~_

_~In this Moment~_

* * *

She grabbed some clothes and moved to the bathroom. She had her own bathroom with running water. Tessa was so tempted to take a quick shower, but she just washed her face and changed into a night shirt. She made her way back to the bed, yawning as she crawled in. She felt joker pull her over to his body.

She gasped when his bare skin touched her body. She turned to look at him, his eyes closed.

"You have to close your eyes to go to sleep." he said.

"I don't feel very tired anymore." she said as she pushed his shoulder.

He laid flat on his back, and she moved to straddle his body. His eyes were open now.

"Oh, I think I like this." he said, lifting the edge of her shirt, trying to peek under.

She slapped his hand away playfully and grabbed the hem of her shirt, pulling it over her head and tossing it away. His hand moved up caressing and scratching along her body. He stopped near her breasts. His eyes locked onto the bandage.

Tessa followed his gaze. She pulled the bandage free, exposing the scabbed 'J'.

"That's better." he said.

"It was still bleeding, I couldn't bleed everywhere at work." She explained.

She watched as he reached up and drug his finger along the lines of it. He pressed hard enough that it began to bleed again. She hissed at the sharp pain. His eyes moved to hers and she smiled. She raised her body up and removed her panties, setting back down.

"That was pretty presumptuous of you." he said, chuckling.

"Oh, well I'll get dressed then." she said and moved to lay down.

His hands grabbed her knees, locking her legs down next to his body. She laughed and leaned forward. She felt like her life had changed completely in the last few days. It was fast, crazy, and she loved it.

She leaned down and ran her tongue across his nipple, then bit down. She smiled when his hands tightened on her legs again. She repeated it on the other side. She could feel his cock hardening under her. She looked up at his face, he was watching her, seeing what she'd do next.

She moved her body forward, letting her slick folds rub along his erection. She felt her body clench when he moaned aloud. His hands moved to her ass and pushed her down harder against his cock. She let out a whimper, then he moved fast. He pushed her face first into the bed, pulling her ass up in the air.

He was inside her before she could think. The angle allowed him to bump against her cervix as he thrust into her. The painful/pleasure caused her to climax after only a few strokes. She screamed the release into the mattress. She moved to raise herself, his hand pushing her back down before she got too far.

He grabbed her arm, bending them at the elbows, behind her back. She couldn't move from her position. Her body was on overload. The helpless feeling, along with his relentless fucking was building another orgasm slowly. Her body was out of her control. When the orgasm hit her, she felt darkness take her over.

She slowly opened her eyes, looking into the amused eyes of her lover. She felt disoriented.

"I don't like fucking someone while they are unconscious." He said, laughing at her confused face.

She kissed him, "I'm awake." she said.

He pulled her leg up and over his hip, sliding back into her. He moved slowly, she watched his restraint, it looked almost painful. She tried to urge him on, pushing her hips forward harder. He held her in place. She frowned, this would not work. She locked her leg around him and rolled him fully on top of her.

He braced his hands under her arms. He moved slowly again. Tessa was fed up, she watched him for a second and them slapped him fully across the face. He froze, his body rigid. His eyes opened and locked on hers. She smiled, she leaned her head up and kissed his mouth, then bit his lip hard enough to draw blood.

That was it, he kissed her roughly as he picked up the harder faster pace with his hips. He broke the kiss and moved his head down, licking across the 'J' on her chest. his tongue hot and slightly rough against the wound. She gasped and felt her body spasm, the sensation almost painful as she came for the third time.

She moved to his shoulder, biting him hard, She could taste the metallic blood as it fell from his body. He slowed his movements releasing himself deep in her exhausted body. She laid there, breathing heavy, watching him collect himself. He looked down at her face.

"You play a very dangerous game." he said.

His blood was smeared on her, mixing with the smears of face paint. He felt his cock twitch at the sight. He kissed her, pulling his body from hers. She smiled and turned to her side. She didn't remember falling asleep.

* * *

Tessa's bladder finally woke her up. It screamed for her to go empty it. She slid out of the bed and stumbled into the restroom. She relieved her bladder and then looked up at herself in the small mirror. She looked ridiculous. She had greasepaint and what looked like blood on her face. Her hair was a tangled mess.

She moved to the shower and sighed into the hot stream. She cleaned herself and got out, walking to the small closet she had now. Her clothes were all washed and hanging up. She smiled as she picked out some clothes.

She pulled her hair back today, not feeling like messing with it. She looked around, wondering where Joker had gone to. Shit, she didn't even know what time it was. She moved to the door and opened it. She saw a piece of paper stuck to her door. She grabbed it and read The very neat handwriting on it.

_You're late for work, I called them told em you had the flu_

Tessa groaned, she hadn't missed work, ever. She must have been tired to have slept this late. She decided to relax. Grabbing her sketch book, she walked down to Joker's room. She knocked. There was no answer, she tried the knob. It was unlocked. She stepped in and noticed it was empty.

She walked over to the couch and turned on the TV. She let the noise play in the background as she worked on her picture. It had started a quick sketch, not was a fairly detailed portrait. She was slightly taken back by her starting obsession with this man. He obviously wasn't completely sane.

But he was a part of her now. She would never be the same. If this was just a temporary thing, she wouldn't be able to go back to a normal relationship. He'd left an emotional mark on her as well as the actual one. She stopped, putting the book and her pencil set on the table. She watched the television, it was late enough that it was just a bunch of infomercials. She had dozed off at some point.

"Honey, I'm home." She heard his voice bellow through the building. She sat up and stretched until her back popped. She stood and moved to the door of his room.

She stepped out and could barely make out his silhouette moving through the dark warehouse. He moved up to where she was. "There she is, sleeping beauty." he said.

"You should have woke me up, I can't just not go to work." she said.

"I tried, you _slapped_ at me." he said. "I didn't have time for playing a little _slap and tickle_. So I, uh, let you sleep."

He moved past her and into his room. She turned and followed him. She watched him move around the room. He finally walked to the couch and sat down. He flipped through channels. She watched his face. He found Gotham's 24 hour news channel and set the remote down.

As he watched the news, she walked over and set next to him. His hand instantly moved to her thigh. He just held her, like the touch was all he needed. It wasn't a sexual thing. Maybe like a comfort thing? She smiled either way.

She had dozed again as he watched the news. She woke to him poking her face. She opened her eyes and he was nose to nose with her. His face clean of his make up and his hair damp.

"Wake up sleepy head." he said moving away from her.

She sat up and looked around. She hated feeling so tired. Her stomach growled loud. Joker turned to look at her.

"Hungry?" he asked.

"Yea, I haven't eaten today." she said. He frowned at the words.

"Why _not_?" he asked.

She shrugged, unsure how to answer his question.

"Follow me." he said.

She stood and followed after him. He led her down the stairs and she was blind again. This building was dark. She could hear his steps but couldn't see anything.

The lights blared to life, blinding her temporarily. "Shit." she cursed.

"Whoops." he giggled.

She blinked her vision back. He was on the other side of the large open room. He crooked his finger at her, waiting for her to walk over to him. She walked to where he stood. He took her hand and walked with her to a small hallway and into a decent kitchen.

She smiled. Of course he had to have a place with a kitchen. She looked around.

"Help yourself. A kid delivers food once a week. So use what you need." He said and left her in there.

She looked through the cabinets and found a box of Mac and cheese. She quickly fixed it and ate it. She felt much better. She made her way back up to Joker's room. She saw him standing in front of the couch, his head down. She walked over and nearly panicked when she saw him looking at her sketch book.

"Is this what I look like to you?" he asked. His voice not giving any indication of his mood.

"Yea, but its not finished, yet." she said.

He closed the book, setting it down on the table. He didn't say anything, just walked to her. He stood in front of her, closer than most would find comfortably. Tessa was becoming used to his strange lack of personal space.

"I, uh, got you something." he said. flicking the end of her nose.

She cut her eyes at the gesture. "What?" she asked.

"Nothing crazy," he gestured wildly with his hands. She giggled. "Just saw something while I was out _working_ today and thought, 'Tessa would_ love_ that.'. So I got it for you." he said.

She raised her eyebrow. She was thoroughly confused, 'What on Earth could he have gotten her?' she was almost scared to think about it.

She put her hand out, "Well?" she said.

* * *

**...a gift? things are about to move fast... **


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Batman makes a cameo y'all...**

* * *

_~The monster you made, is wearing the crown,_

_ I'll be the king, you be the clown,_

_ I'll take the blame, parade it around,_

_ You've made me the villain, you can't live without~_

_~Motionless in White~_

* * *

Joker pulled a small item out of his pocket, placing it into her hand. Tessa looked at the small plastic thing.

"What is it?" she asked.

"It's a key fob." he said.

"Like for a car?" she asked.

"Mhm." he agreed.

She was lost. She had planned to go buy herself a car. She had plenty of cash in her account, she _had_ been saving for her own place. She looked at the small fob.

"I can't take this. It's too much." she said holding out her hand.

He waved it away, and started moving around the place. He was grabbing things and putting them in pockets.

"Are you going somewhere?" she asked.

"Yea." he said, looking up like he'd just realized she was still there. "Gotta get back to work. Rumors say Batsy has gone underground. I need to draw him back out." he explained.

She was curious, what was going on in his head? She watched the manic movements. He moved into the bathroom, she could hear him moving around his tins of face paint. He walked out of the bathroom, wiping his hands on a small cloth.

She watched him push his stained fingers into his gloves. She was almost afraid to speak, not wanting to interrupt his frantic pace. He stopped in the middle of the room and did a small turn, tilting his head to the side as well.

Then he turned and almost skipped to the door. He stopped and faced her. "Don't wait up, I might be home late if I, " he paused grinning, "get _lucky_." he wiggled his eyebrows.

She laughed. He moved swiftly out of the door and was gone. Tessa looked around his room. He'd made a mess. She was NOT cleaning up after him. She left his room and made her way back to her own. She slid on a pair of shoes and left to look at her car.

She walked down to the front door and saw a set of keys hanging next to it. She grabbed the keys. They had a small plastic keychain attached to it. A rectangle with the Gotham skyline shadowed on it. She turned them over and saw her name crudely scratched into the surface. Not Tessa, he carved in her full name. She frowned, she hated her full name.

She looked at the keys. She assumed one was for the front door. She tried the larger of the two, she got it first try. The other key looked like a door key, she turned and looked up at the stairs. She moved back up, trying the other key in her door. Perfect fit. She moved to his door, it had a similar lock, she wondered if it worked on his too.

The key slid in and turned with ease. She smiled. She locked his door and moved back to hers. She went in and grabbed her small wallet and the green hoodie he'd given her before. She shut and locked her door, hurrying out of the front door.

She locked it up and turned to find her gift. It was a bright flashy red. It was a newer car, a Chevy Camaro, she walked around and looked at it. Why the hell would he get this for her? She couldn't understand. It stuck out in this side of town.

She used the fob to get in. She started it and drove away from her new place. It drove like a dream. She liked this car. It was perfect. Damn him. She drove it to the store, going in to buy her a few things she might need at her new place. She shopped quickly wanting to hurry back to the hideout. She decided she needed to get her a prepaid phone. She needed to call work and apologize profusely.

She paid for her purchases and drove home. She activated the phone and put it on the charger. She put away the things she had gotten. A bit of make up she needed, different toilet paper, and feminine products. She didn't want to consider that conversation with him.

Once the phone was charged, she called up to the diner. She made sure to try to sound sick. Samantha, the other overnight waitress, answered.

"Hey Sam, sorry I couldn't make it, I was feeling so sick." She said.

"It's fine, Fred is upset, but he will get over it." She said. "It's petty dead anyway." She added.

"I will be back tomorrow night." she assured the girl.

"Good, glad your feeling better. Fred was surprised when your boyfriend called. I think he was upset you had a boyfriend more than you missing work." She said laughing.

"Eww." Tessa said, "He's like 50."

Samantha laughed. "Yea he's a real creep. Just get better and be here tomorrow. Gotta go." she hung up the phone.

Tessa put her new phone down and looked around. She didn't have many nights off, She didn't know what to do. She figured she'd go watch the TV. She moved to Joker's room and sat on the couch. She turned on the TV and flipped around the channels. She settled on some reality show. It was mind numbing.

She woke up to the early news. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and looked at the too bright TV. The ticker at the bottom read 5:27 AM. She had fallen asleep and had a slight crick in her neck and shoulder. She straightened and stretched her back.

The news story caught her attention.

_It has been confirmed the criminal known as The Joker has been captured. He was dropped off at the Gotham police department about an hour ago. No one saw who dropped him off, but he was found unconscious at the doors. The police refuse to give a statement at the moment. The Joker , as you know, is wanted for terroristic attacks across the entire city. Most recently, he is suspected to have blown up the unfinished Prewitt building and Gotham ferries. We will keep the citizens of Gotham up to date as we learn more on the story._

Tessa was at a loss. Joker got caught? Her logical side fought with her. He _is_ a mass murderer. He never denied it. He killed people and caused a lot of trouble. She sighed. He was nice to her, well, mostly nice. She literally shook her head to shut up the warring sides of her mind.

None of that mattered, he was currently locked up, and she was alone, again. She got up and turned off the TV and headed back to her room. She piled into her bed and fell into a fitful sleep.

* * *

Joker drove to meet up with his guys. They had a lot of work to do, havoc to wreak. He pulled up to the warehouse and barged in. The guys were already there. dressed in different strange masks and get ups. 'Goodie' He thought.

"Alright boys, the plan tonight is to have _fun. _We will be having fun painting the town red. Keep your phones on and remember, if you see the Bat, let me know immediately." He said. The guys moved to grab various weapons.

"Load up." he said as they headed to the different vans they used. Joker was in a smaller SUV with two other guys, they would be driving around waiting for the bat to show himself. Joker was nervous with anticipation, they needed to have a _long_ talk.

Hours passed, he sat in the back as they drove around. He was ready to shoot himself when one of the guys texted him an address. BINGO!

He barked the address to the driver and the sped away. They found him, The Batman, He had three of his guys detained and was crouched down. Maybe talking to them? Joker smiled, this would be fun.

"Lights off, run them over." he told the driver.

"Boss?"

"Run. Them. Over." he said slowly.

The man turned the headlights off and hit the gas, their SUV barreled down the street.

Joker was giggling in the back seat, he put his seatbelt on just in case. Batman looked up and jumped out of the way, the car barely clipping him. The thugs were all hit. Joker looked up at the impact, his driver had smashed against the wheel and the passenger was halfway through the windshield.

He frowned slightly as he unbuckled his seatbelt. The impact had caused the belt to tighten and it opened the two wounds on his chest. He could feel them starting to bleed. The adrenaline rushed through his limbs.

He got out of the back of the SUV and looked for Batman. There he was, pulling himself up to his feet.

"Oh Batsy, You, _uh_ flying under the radar now? I don't see your signal anymore." Joker said, moving to the side while he pointed at the dark sky. He watched the man in front of his stand fully, face pinched in pain.

"Joker, this is over, I'm taking you in." He said.

"You can try, but I just wanted to chat." he said taking another step to the side, slowly distancing himself from the wrecked car.

"No. No talking. You murdered those people. You are sick. You need help." Batman said, his jaw muscles clenching.

"Do you watch the news? The wonderful citizens think you are just as sick as me. Hm? Why is that, you ask. Well, I will tell you. You, _Batsy_, took the blame for Dent's mess. That was," He paused, looking for the right word, "_Unexpected_, but not surprising." he frowned.

"Enough, I am taking you in, this ends tonight." Batman said talking a step forward.

"Ah, ah, ah, I'm not done talking. You will hear me out. After that, well, we will see." he said.

Batman watched him, the silence was delicious to Joker. He could feel all kinds of emotions running through him.

"Talk." batman said.

The one word made Joker happier than he'd been in a while. "I want you to know that everything I have done since our little meeting at Dent's fundraiser party, has been for you. I want to open your eyes. There are no hard feelings on my part, and I know once you understand, you'll forgive me too." he said.

Batman clenched his fists. Joker watched, as he continued. "This has all been for you. The city turned on you, just like I told you they would. To them, you are just some weirdo in a mask. They walk with you everyday, unknown to them, and feel nothing. You could just pack away the suit, mix right in to the crowd. But you don't, you can't."

"Get to the point." he growled at Joker.

"The point, Batsy, is that we are the same, and until you accept who you really are, this will never end. You will have to kill me, because I won't stop."

Batman lunged forward, he punched Joker hard in the stomach, doubling him over. Joker coughed, trying to catch his breath. While still crouched down, Joker grabbed a knife out of his pocket. He caught batman in the outer thigh. He thought he'd missed at first, but the blood flowed from the wound.

Joker laughed as Batman pulled back, hand going to the wound. Batman reached to his waist and pushed a button. Joker watched, waiting to see what would happen. When Joker pressed buttons, explosive things happened. He heard an engine behind him. He turned and the Batman's motorcycle was there. Joker raised his eyebrows. Batman had the best toys.

Joker turned back to Batman and started to move forward. Batman pressed another button and some corded material shot out and hit joker in the back, causing him to stumble forward. Batman moved quickly pushing joker down to the damp concrete.

"Finish it, make me proud." Joker said laughing. He watched, and for a brief second Joker thought he might actually kill him. Batman grabbed his head and slammed it against the concrete. Joker felt an explosion in his brain and blacked out.

Batman dropped Joker off at the GCPD, calling Gordon to give him a heads up. As batman made his way back to take care of the others, he smiled. He'd finally beaten the Joker, without killing him.

* * *

**...Batsy, Batsy, Batsy...**


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: This is kind of a filler chapter, but necessary to move the plot along...**

* * *

_~I love the way you look at me, _

_I feel the pain you place inside, _

_You lock me up inside your dirty cage,_

_ while I'm alone inside my mind~_

_~Puddle of Mudd~_

* * *

Tessa felt strange. She was back to her normal routine. Wake up, eat, work, eat, home, then sleep. Sure a few details had changed. She stayed at the new place, though she found herself staying in Joker's room more and more often. She lied to herself saying it was because of the television. She had a car to drive to work. The lack of walking seemed to have caused her to put on a few pounds.

The delivery boy still delivered every week. She'd wake up in the afternoon on Thursdays to a fully stocked kitchen. She did watch a bit more television, She'd followed the story on Joker. The courts believed he may be insane, they have him in Arkham, to see if he is fit to stand trial for his rampage.

Tessa tried not to think on it, she didn't want him to be at Arkham. That place was shady. She didn't want him in prison either. She felt lost. So to keep her sanity, she continued her routine. At the beginning every other story was about the Joker. The second week it was about his mental state. The less she saw on TV the more she missed him. She'd survived 27 days so far.

The stories on the news had less and less information. Maybe the buzz around the story would go away. She'd contemplated going to see if they'd allow her to visit him. Just to make sure he was okay. She knew it was a bad idea. She couldn't really do too much until after her birthday. She only had a few more days.

All she had to do was make it until then, she would be her own person. She held onto that thread of hope. A few more days. A few more days. She repeated it in her head every morning. She thought about going to the warehouse to see if his men still stayed there, but she was a big fat chicken. They were bad guys, any way you cut it.

When her birthday finally rolled around, she woke up sad. She didn't feel any better, she felt exactly the same as she had before. She followed the same routine. She grimaced when she saw the dark circles under her eyes. She hadn't been sleeping well. She'd been here, alone for 33 days now. Just over an entire month. The 'J' on her chest had healed weeks ago, It was a bright pink raised scar now.

She caught herself tracing the mark through her clothes a lot. She was going insane sitting around here. Tessa decided that she'd do something different for her birthday. She wanted to make it special. She'd thought this day would never come.

She dressed and headed out of the door, locking everything up behind her. She got into her car and sped away. She went into downtown Gotham, stopping by her bank. She parked her car and put some quarters into the parking meter. She hurried in and waited patiently in line to see a teller.

"I can help the next person in line." a face less voice sounded.

Tessa hurried over and laid her ID and the withdrawal slip down. The teller grabbed the items and started tying on the machine in front of him.

Within minutes, Tessa had some spending money and drove to the nearest shopping center. She parked her car and headed to the large mall. She'd never really been here. It was way to far of a walk and she never wanted to spend her money before today. She stepped into the highly air-conditioned building and looked around. The place was full of people.

She smiled and started to walk around. She stopped and bought a soft pretzel. She nibbled the snack as she looked store to store. She finally found one that had local artwork displayed. She looked through the selection, but didn't find anything she wanted.

The pretzel started to make her feel sick, she threw away the remaining half. She wondered around the mall and made a few small purchases. She decided to call it a day and just go home. The drive took no time at all. She parked her car and started up to the door. She stood there, keys ready to unlock the warehouse/apartment she had. Her brain was a mess, she should move, She was an adult now. Maybe she should start looking for a new place, get away from anything Joker related.

The thought thrilled and terrified her. She could start fresh, she had enough money in the bank. She could be a whole new person. She felt suddenly very tired. She opened the door and made her way upstairs. She unlocked Joker's room and kicked off her shoes. She laid face down over the blankets. Sleep took her over almost instantly.

* * *

Life at Arkham was, _different_. When Joker first arrived, he found the entire idea amusing. He loved how everyone was afraid to even look at him. If he was able to catch people unaware, they panicked as his eyes bore into theirs. A few words here, an innuendo there and they'd run off scared and sometimes crying.

After the first week, the night guards started to pay visits to Joker. He had a hard time sleeping in this place, so he was awake when his cell door clicked and swung open. A large man walked in followed by two smaller guys. They closed the cell door behind them.

"Get up, freak." the larger man demanded.

Joker laughed. This should be good. He complied, standing to his full height. He stretched his arms above his head and listened as the vertebra popped in his spine.

"Don't get me wrong fellas, it's not that I don't love a good party, but it's past my bedtime, a girl needs her beauty sleep." he said.

The large man punched him, a solid hit to his solar plexus. Joker doubled over, grunting through the inability to breath in. The three guards didn't move. They stood watching the Joker, curious as to how he would react. Joker, finally able to breath in, stood up straight. The gleam in his eye caused one of the smaller men to take a step back. Joker looked at his name badge. Jones. He'd remember that.

The larger man moved towards him, Joker caught the movement. His eyes darted to the leader of the small group. This man was angry, Joker could only assume he'd killed or maimed someone the man knew. He smiled. The doctors may be refusing him his face paint, but he'd learned to improvise. Baby powder and water made a flakey white mask. He had stolen shoe polish from a desktop, but the chemicals burned his eyes. So he started using the graphite from pencils to darken his eyes. He had used his own blood to stain his lips and scars. The result of his homemade war-paint may be more terrifying than the grease paint.

"What's the matter ladies? Did the big, bad _Joker_ hurt a loved one?" He asked.

The larger guard's face turned red with rage. "Grab him." he said.

The two smaller men started to move, Joker focused on them. Daring them to step up. The men hesitated. "Maybe we should just go?" Jones said. Joker grinned, smart man.

"I'd take his advice." Joker warned.

"Fuck this." The larger man said and reached to grab Joker. The man's large hand moved to grab Joker's neck. Moving his chin down Joker was able to bite the man. He locked his teeth into the man's flesh. For such a large man he screamed like a woman, high pitched and very loud. Joker didn't let up. the two smaller men grabbed the larger man and pulled him.

Bad idea, the flesh on his hand tore, Joker spit out a large portion of the man's finger. Blood was everywhere, Joker spat it out of his mouth. The three men stumbled out of the room, leaving behind the chunk of flesh. Joker laughed, picking it up and flushing it down the toilet. He laid back down on his bed. He missed Tessa, but it was kind of fun in there.

By the second week the novelty wore off. He was bored. They started giving him all kinds of meds. They made him mostly sleepy. At least groggy enough that the guards felt braver than before. He would wake up the next morning with new bruises and no memory of the fun. That would not do.

Once the therapy started, he decided to get out of here. It wouldn't be too hard. He'd have to find a guard or an orderly to pay off. It would take some finesse. Joker was confident he'd be back home soon.

By the third week, He was ready to blow the building sky high. What he had found amusing at first, was now biting him in the ass. They were all too scared to even look at him. When he tried to speak, they hurried away. He was on his third therapist now. He would meet them in the morning.

The first was old, skittish. Joker had convinced him to take a dive off the top of the asylum. That had been fun. The second therapist wouldn't stop staring at his scars, it annoyed him to no end. Then the man made mention of the scar on his chest, Tessa's mark. One of the orderlies had taken a pic for his file, causing the Doc to grow curious. At their last session, the doc had made the mistake of loosening his strait jacket to take a peek. Joker gouged out his eyes using only his thumbs.

The feeling when the orbs popped and the hot fluid running across his hands was amazing. Joker sat in his cell now with a raging erection just thinking about it. This new doc could be fun. At least something to pass the time.

Joker was shocked when a lady doc had walked through the door. She was blonde and kinda ditzy. He chuckled. This could be fun. He laid on a thick story of his abusive father and sad childhood. She was in tears by the end of the first session. By the end of his first month, she was putty in his hands.

This was his ticket out, he just knew it. No one could resist the charisma of The Joker. He laughed at the entire situation. The doc had been sliding him all kinds of contraband. Harmless stuff really, lipstick here, extra dessert there, small touches to his arm. He laid in his room at night and thought about Tessa. At least he had her set up at his place and gotten her a car. She would be fine there until he got out. She was tough.

* * *

**This wont be a Harley/Joker fic.. but she is in the story ...**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: duuuuuude my brain has been taking me weird places now...enjoy the ride I guess.**

* * *

_~Hung my head as I lost the war, _

_and the sky turned black,_

_ like the perfect storm,_

_ rain came poring down,_

_ when I was drowning, that's when I could finally breathe.~_

_~Taylor Swift~_

* * *

Tessa felt like shit. She had been sick, caught some stomach bug. She woke up feeling tired and sick, after the 3rd day, she finally dragged herself to the clinic. She was sitting in the waiting room, barf bag at the ready. She worked on filling out her paperwork, getting it done before she met with the doctor. She didn't have any idea about family histories. She left all of that blank. She wrote in the symptoms and when she was first sick.

She moved to the next question and felt her nausea hit full force. They needed the date of her last period. She couldn't remember. The heat in her belly building. She emptied the acid that was churning in her belly, into the plastic barf bag.

She left the question blank. She walked over to the intake nurse and dropped off the paper work and asked if there was somewhere to get rid of her used bag. The nurse took it to the biohazard can and dropped it off.

Tessa sat back in her seat, head in her hands trying not to panic. She jumped when she heard her name called. She moved to the back with the nurse.

"I need you to go in here and pee into this cup, use the marker to write your last name on it. Leave it on the counter and I will collect it. Then go to room 4." she pointed at the door.

"Okay Thanks." Tessa said.

She filled the cup and wrote her name on it. She washed her hands and left the small restroom. She stepped into room number 4 and waited. The room was cold, causing her to shiver uncontrollably. Or maybe it was nerves.

The nurse finally came in and went over her paperwork. She took her blood pressure and temperature. She finished marking on the chart, letting Tessa know the doctor would be in to see her soon.

The doctor came in and looked over the chart. The man was young, he looked way too young to be a doctor. He sat on the small stool and looked at her. Tessa could see the judgement on his face. She felt her tummy turn again.

"Well, I see you came in because you've been sick?" she nodded. "Were you aware that you are pregnant?"

Tessa felt her head spin. He said it out loud, her brain silently begged for the words to disappear. "No." she admitted.

"More than likely, that is why you are getting sick. You aren't running a fever and common early symptoms are nausea, vomiting, and headaches, to name a few. Your blood pressure is a bit low, that could be contributing to your fatigue." He was writing something down. "You are young, I suggest you get on prenatal vitamins as soon as possible, I recommend buying a box of ginger snap cookies, they help slightly with nausea. Stay hydrated and see an OBGYN as soon as possible." He handed her a prescription for the vitamins.

He left her there. She felt like she would puke again, even though she knew her stomach was empty. She stared off into space, the news chilling her more, she was pregnant. What the hell was she going to do? She was too young for a baby. She slowly made her way out of the small room, feeling worse than she had before.

She made her way into her car and cranked the heater as high as it would go. She felt numb. She drove home, not remembering getting there. She pulled herself into bed and cried until she passed out.

* * *

Joker sat in Harleen's office. His plan had worked too well. This crazy lady was talking about all the stuff they could do together when they leave. _They_. Like he was going to bring her along. Maybe he'd have to kill her. That was a shame, true devotion was a good thing, at times.

She walked into the room smiling sweetly at him. Her big blue eyes locked on him.

"Mr. J, What should we talk about today?" She asked sitting in her chair across from him.

He hated her, she still talked down to him as if she were better, because she sat over there, on that side of the desk. But he needed to play nice. If he could just get a call to his guys, he'd be out of this dump soon.

"I need a phone, they won't let me call anyone." He said finally. He watched as her face tensed up.

"Who would you be calling?" she asked. He groaned.

"Just checking on a friend. That's all." he said, watching her relax.

"If I let you use my phone, you have to promise, you aren't calling to set off a bomb or calling in a hit."

Joker felt his anger pulse through him. The nerve of this person, dictating to him what he was allowed to do. He pushed it down, he just needed the damned phone.

"Promise." He said.

She looked at him for a full minute before she stood. She walked over to her desk, and, instead of walking around, she bent herself over the top. The movement caused her skirt to ride up, flashing the Joker a nice view of her ass. It reminded him of bending Tessa over his desk.

He bit the inside of his cheek. The pain pulling him back to the present. The doctor was walking back over and holding a phone in her hand.

"Now a quick call, no tricks, right." She asked.

"Of course." he said taking the phone from her. He quickly dialed the number to the warehouse. I gruffy voice answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey pal, how are ,_uh_, things there?" he said in his nicest voice.

"Boss, is that you?" the man asked.

"You know it."

"What do you need?" he asked.

"You know, the usual, I just wanted you to know I'm in Arkham." Joker told him.

"We seen on the news, you need an out?" he asked.

"Yea, that's good." Joker said.

"We are on it." the man replied and hung up.

Joker ended the call and handed the phone back to Harleen. He smiled as the doctor put the phone in her pocket.

"Thank you for keeping your word." She said.

"I would never lie to you, doc." He said.

"I know, Mr. J., I know" she said smiling at the deranged man.

Later in his cell he paced. He had several emergency plans in place at the warehouse. He wondered which one the men would choose. He felt giddy at the thought of the chaos that would follow his escape.

The drugs they gave him made his mind feel dull and slow. This place was so colorless. white walls, black edges, dull people, dull food. It could drive a guy insane. Joker painted the walls of his colorless cell often with his homemade warpaint and sometimes his own blood.

The orderlies hated it, but he was so dreadfully bored.

* * *

Tessa was lost. Not physically, but in every other way, emotionally, spiritually, just lost. She had no idea what she should do, so she did nothing. She had barely left Joker's room, well the bed actually. She ate, got ill, slept, and used the restroom. She had spent the 2 weeks following her doctor appointment, just existing.

When she woke today, she was angry. She was angry at the world. Pissed at her self mostly. She was an idiot. She forced herself from the dirty sheets and into the shower. Her hair so greasy and ratted from lack of care. She conditioned it three times before it finally got untangled. She scrubbed the sweat and funk from her skin.

She got out and dried off. She pulled on clean clothes and pulled her hair back and braided it. She stepped back into the room she had been inhabiting for a while now, disgusted by how filthy she'd let it get. She started cleaning. By the time she'd cleaned it and changed sheets, she was exhausted.

She went into the bathroom to clean up. She felt herself start to panic, the depressive funk trying to take her over again. She looked at her reflection in the mirror, dark circles were around her eyes. She looked pale and sickly. She laughed when the tears caused her vision to blur and she almost looked like she was wearing joker's make up. The smile was missing though. The thought tickled her so much she reached for the tin of red paint.

She smeared the thick substance across her mouth. She was loosing it. Her tear blurred reflection watched her, judged her silently. She felt like banging her head against the wall. She had to get out of this place. She knew she was having a panic attack, she knew she should breath, but her body was moving with out her consent.

She was already out and into her car, she didn't even have on shoes. She drove, down near the docks. She parked her car and moved to the edge of one of the small piers. She sat on the edge, letting her feel dangle. Her eyes locked on the water.

She sat watching the cold breeze blow ripples across the icy water. She smiled, that sounded nice, the cold water. She smiled again, pulling herself to her feet, Tessa walked back to the car. She got into the drivers seat and buckled up. She started the engine and listened to it hum. She was just tired, the cold water would wake her up.

She hummed along to a song only she could hear. She smiled as looked straight ahead. She smiled as she pressed the accelerator. She smiled as the end of the pier came closer. She laughed as her car crossed the edge and tipped forward. The front end of her car hit the water, her face hit the steering wheel. She blacked out as she felt the cold water touching her toes.

* * *

Joker was feeling antsy, he had been forced to pace away the feeling. Luckily the Doc trusted him completely, letting him walk around free in her office. No restraints at all now. The woman was clearly of her rocker. She let him have complete control. He liked it, but she didn't have that little defiant streak he liked. It wasn't fun if he didn't get to punish her.

That is what he enjoyed about Tessa, She didn't trust him. She only did what he wanted if she agreed. She argued and her smart mouth drove him crazy. But she knew when to let him have the control. He loved and hated her for it.

The Doc on the other hand worshiped him, let him do whatever he wanted. She practically begged him to fuck her. He didn't, she wasn't in charge here. She was helpful, so he let her believe what she wanted. It didn't hurt anyone. He wasn't speaking to her for the last few days as punishment. She had refused to let him use the phone again.

He set himself down in her office. He watched her gnaw on her lower lip. Her eyes begged him to talk to her. He rolled his eyes at the display, and scanned her office. She had no family pics up, no personal effects to make the place more hospitable. Her large wall had her medical license and nothing else. Joker focused in on a water stain in the corner.

"Mr. J, please, don't be mad at me. I can't let you use my phone. Someone let a patient get ahold of theirs and it as found in their cell. We can't keep them on us anymore. Honest." She pleaded holding her hands up.

Joker hated how she used that name now, it was humiliating. He worked hard for his name to strike fear into people. He felt like she was mocking him. But she wouldn't het into his head. He wouldn't allow it. He locked his eyes with hers, the tears about to fall from those bright blue eyes. He sighed. He did have to keep her on his side until he was extracted. He frowned, letting it pull almost painfully at his scars.

"Fine Doc, I forgive you." He said, his voice low.

"Oh Mr. J, thank you." there went the tears. "I don't like when you won't talk to me." She admitted.

"Yea, Doc, I got it. All's forgiven." he told her, trying to suppress the urge to gouge out her eyes.

They _were_ very pretty eyes.

* * *

**... hhmmm...**


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: o.0 This...is...what...my...brain...thinks...up...with...no...sleep...I apologize in advance (muahahaha)**

* * *

_~People come, people go, _

_some grow young, some grow cold, _

_I woke up in between, a memory and a dream.~_

_~Tom Petty~_

* * *

Joker sat in the front seat of one of his vans. He was breathing in the fresh air, his head hanging out of the window like a dog.

"Almost there, Boss." the driver said interrupting his musing.

Joker opened his eyes and could see the warehouse. He felt bubbly inside, his body almost tingling in anticipation. The van had barely stopped when he jumped out. He rushed inside and into his office to change out of the Arkham issued garb and back into his own clothes. He decided to keep the pants, they were kind of comfy, but he wanted to be dressed nice.

He didn't have his keys, he'd have to get them out of the Arkham storage eventually. There was no time today, it was a quick bait and switch to get him out. The place would find out anytime now. He hoped Tessa was home, he didn't have his house keys either.

He left, grabbing the keys to on of the SUVs. He drove as fast as the traffic would allow. He was turning towards his place, slowing down slightly. The opposite way was full of flashing lights. They must have found another body washed up under the pier. It happens pretty often. He finally pulled up to his place and frowned. Tessa's car wasn't there.

He parked and started up top the door. It wasn't just unlocked, it was open. He took out the only knife he'd found in his office, and moved into the dark building. He checked and cleared the bottom floor, nothing looked disturbed.

He slowly made his way upstairs. He stopped at Tessa's door, checking the handle. It was unlocked. He opened the door fully, letting it touch the wall to make sure no one was hiding there. The room looked like a tornado had stormed through. The bed was unmade and her closet was almost empty. Hangers askew.

Her clothes were all over the floor. The bathroom looked unused. He moved out of her room and down to his room. He opened the unlocked door, stepping inside. His room looked well, clean. Cleaner than he'd ever had it. The bed was made, the floors spotless. He moved to the closet, She had her clothes hung up with his.

She _had_ missed him. That was good. He stepped into the bathroom. Her soap and hair stuff was in here. He looked around, noting his red face paint was out and open on the counter. That was... _odd. _

He turned back to the room, going to his closet and grabbing fresh unwrinkled clothes. He took a long hot shower. The showers at Arkham were brutal and cold. They left you still feeling greasy after. He got out and dressed. It was later in the evening, maybe Tessa was at work. He grabbed the spare keys to the building and left, locking up behind him.

He drove down to the greasy spoon she worked at and parked in the small lot. He watched through the large windows. There was an older lady and a younger girl, but no Tessa. Where was she? He looked around the small parking lot, her car wasn't here. He frowned. Something was not right about all of this. He pulled the car out of the lot and drove to her _old_ place . Maybe she was feeling nostalgic.

The drive was quick, and Joker was losing the small amount of patience he had. No car, no lights on. He drove back to his place. Where, oh where, could little Contessa be? He made his way up to his room and paced the floor. He would find her, he would kill her. She was his and she should be _here_. Or at least where he could _find_ her. His anger flared again.

He moved to the couch, looking for the remote. He looked to the table and froze. The entire surface was covered with drawings of his face. He moved closer to the pages. Some were in black and white, some in color, some in psychedelic colors.

He picked up one of the pictures, noting Tessa's small signature in the corner. She _had_ missed him, she'd drawn him, obsessively. He smiled, maybe he wouldn't kill her. He looked at all of the pictures. He found one he couldn't take his eyes off of. His face was in black and white, full make up but his eyes were literally burning, the flames coming out of the sockets.

He set the pictures back and grabbed the remote they had been covering. He turned his attention to the news station. There was his face, plastered on ever channel. He leaned back on the couch, listening to the awful things they said about him.

* * *

Tessa's eyes opened, barely cracked, when the light blinded her. She squeezed them shut again. She moved to cover her eyes when she realized her arms were strapped down. She tried to make a sound but her voice wasn't there.

Alarms started blaring, hurting her ears. She couldn't move, her arms and legs immobile, she was panicking. She could feel the hot tears running down her face. Suddenly she was surrounded by bodies. They were all shouting, but the alarm stopped thankfully. Tessa tried to open her eyes again. Just a crack, then slowly wider.

The faces above her were all talking, but not to her. Where was she? She tried to listen but there were too many sounds to catch anything she could understand. A face came very close, the voice soft in her ear.

"Relax, you have a breathing tube. We will take it out, but you have to calm down."

Tessa was confused. A breathing tube? She stopped fighting and laid still. She focused on the face that went with the voice. Big blue eyes looked back at her through glasses. The lady had blonde hair and was talking to the others.

She turned back to look at Tessa. "Ready? We will count to three, try to breathe out." she said.

Tessa listened and waited. She heard three and tried to breath out. She felt like she was vomiting, but not. The feeling accompanied by a scraping pain. She coughed and gagged as the long tube was pulled from her body. Then sucked in several deep breathes .

She looked around as the nurse lifted her bed up. The nurses grabbed random things and left, Leaving the blonde woman with the soft voice.

"Hello, I'm Dr. Quinzel, Do you know where you are?" she asked.

Tessa tried to talk but felt instant pain tear through her. She swallowed and just shook her head no.

The woman reached down and squeezed her hand. "That's ok, don't try to talk if it hurts. You are at Gotham General Hospital. Well, the temporary one. You are in the head trauma part of the psych ward."

Tessa was confused, it must have shown, because the woman spoke again.

"You are being held on a 72 hour watch. To see if you are a danger to yourself or others."

Tessa frowned. Danger? She wouldn't hurt herself, would she? She didn't think so, but she did remember being depressed about something. She suddenly tried to reach for her stomach. The straps digging in burning the skin as she pulled.

She fell back on the bed crying silently. She pointed to her stomach. The doctor was looking at her with big sad eyes.

"You lost the baby, I'm sorry, the crash was too much for your body and you were bleeding when they brought you in."

The crash? She remembered. She drove off the pier. She had killed her baby. Her eyes slammed shut, the memories all coming back. Joker, his face, he left her. She killed her baby, she fought the restraints again. She needed to be free. She felt the sting as her flesh broke against the fabric. The pain felt good, familiar. She hated it. She screamed. He abused vocal chords shredded with the abuse.

She felt the damage, the pain, then she blissfully felt nothing but a cold burn move up her arm. The doctor must have given her something. Good. She cried as she drifted back into oblivion.

Tessa woke to the sensation of rocking. She felt slightly queasy at the motion. She opened her eyes, they felt like they had been welded shut. She was in an ambulance. Odd. She was just at the hospital, this seemed like a move in the wrong direction.

She still couldn't move her body. But her head was free to move around. She was a mess, she had no idea where she was going, her throat hurt, her mouth was dry, And now that she was waking up, she was cold too.

The ambulance slowed, then stopped. Her heart was pounding in her chest, She was terrified. The doors to the back opened and she was sliding out. The bed she was strapped to clanked and rocked as she was pulled from the vehicle.

Two men were talking about football. She groaned. She ignored them and looked at the night sky. It was weird to see the stars. They must be a good drive from the city. There were tons of stars twinkling away. It was beautiful. She was moving now, being pushed into a large garage like area. She looked around and panicked when she saw the word "intake" painted on the wall.

She started to fight her restraints again. The hallway they moved into was bright. Her eyes ached at the sudden light. She was pushed into a small room and the men handed over papers to a small Hispanic woman. Next to her as the blonde lady. The doctor. What was her name? Tessa wracked her brain. It was a weird name, Quincey, Quinn, Quasy? She couldn't remember. Damned drugs.

"Welcome to Arkham. We are here to do your physical intake exam. Once we are done here you will be under observation for 72 hours. I will be your doctor. We will have a few intense sessions to assess your threat levels." she spoke.

Tessa hated how chipper she sounded. She watched the woman look over the chart, then set it down.

"If you promise to behave, I will unstrap you. Do you promise?" she asked, her smile large.

Tessa reluctantly nodded. She really wanted to be out of these cuffs and straps. The doctor smiled and started to loosen the straps. As the doctor worked, Tessa relaxed. She only had to wait out three days. Then she could go. She could leave Gotham. She had some money saved.

The doctor helped Tessa sit up. She instantly felt dizzy. She had to slowly use her almost dead limbs. They hadn't been used for a while.

"If you need anything, you can ask a nurse or orderly, they will let me know and it will be taken into consideration." the doctor paused. "You damaged your vocal chords pretty bad. It may take a few days for your voice to come back. Don't push it." She smiled.

Tessa just looked at her. She seemed nice enough, but Tessa wasn't stupid, this woman was not a friend. She nodded her understanding. She was sticking to the original plan. Lay low.

The nurse helped her turn on the bed, moving her legs to dangle down. The muscles screamed in protest. She started to wiggle toes and slowly work her way up. She stopped when the doctor spoke again.

"We need to do a complete physical search of you body, mark all current wounds and scars. Then the usual, blood pressure, temperature etc. Then you can go to your room and relax."

Tessa watched the women move around and poke and prod her, writing their findings down on her chart. Then came the worst part.

They started to check her over. She had a healing bruise on her forehead, a small cut on her cheek, both from the wreck. They helped her remove her gown and marked down the large bruise from the seatbelt. The doctor marked her 'J' scar and the light bitemark on her shoulder and wrote something down on another paper.

Tessa had never felt so naked before. The women helped her change into a pair of Arkham sweats and a scrub like top that was a pale yellow. they slid on the soft soled slippers and helped her stand.

"Nurse Ortiz will help you to your room, you will be brought down in the morning to the canteen to eat breakfast. Then we will have our first session."

Tessa nodded and watched the doctor leave. She was shuffled along to a small room. There was a bed and a toilet, the mirror was just a shiny piece of metal attached to the wall. Tessa waited until the door was closed and she laid on her small bed and let the tears flow.

* * *

**..more to come...**


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: Tessa's first full day at Arkham. hmmm...**

* * *

_~Well I know that I'm a wicked guy, __and I was born with a jealous mind,_

_ And I can't spend my whole life, __trying to make you toe the line._

_Let this be a sermon, I mean everything I said,_

_Baby I'm determined and I'd rather see you dead.~_

_~The Beatles~_

* * *

Tessa woke up feeling sore and disoriented. She looked around and remembered her late night check in at the loony bin. She was upset with herself at this point. She _had_ been the one to drive off of the pier. She didn't think she was a danger to herself. If anything this had woken her up.

She got up and emptied her bladder. She moved to the small sink and washed her face and hands. She felt a little bit better. She moved her shirt to look at her bruising. They were a gross yellow green color. How long had she been unconscious? She'd have to remember to ask the doctor. She sat on the bed and waited.

When the orderly came to her door, she was ready. She was tired of these white walls. The trip to the small cafeteria was quick. She waited in line and got her tray. She looked at the oatmeal and felt her stomach turn. She moved to sit at a small table and peeled the orange that was on her plate.

She drank a small carton of milk and dumped the oatmeal in the garbage. The orderly collected her and they made their way to her first session. The hallways were just as boring as the cells. White tiled walls with random black tiles mixed in. They stopped in front of a door. The name said Dr. Quinzel.

Tessa knew it had been a weird name. The orderly knocked lightly on the door and waited. The door moved and the doctor stood in the doorway, smiling brightly. "Right on time, come in Contessa."

The orderly moved, letting Tessa step inside and the door was closed behind her. Tessa stood there as the doctor moved to a chair and sat down. Tessa moved towards the small couch that was on the far wall. She sat down and waited.

"How are you feeling today?" the doctor asked.

Tessa tried to clear her throat. Most of the pain was gone, her voice was barely a whisper, and was very scratchy. "Better."

The doctor smiled. "Wonderful." she pulled out a small voice recorder and got things set up. She spoke into the device. "This is Dr. Quinzel, session one with patient, Contessa Marlin. Evaluation for mental health hold." she set the recorder down and turned to Tessa.

"Do you remember why you are here?" she asked.

"Tessa." she said.

""Excuse me?"

"I go by Tessa." she said.

The doctor smiled. "Tessa, do you remember?"

"You said I might be a danger to myself. But I'm not."

Her huge smile never faltered. "That is what we are here to find out." She grabbed a pad of paper and clicked her pen . "You are here because you drove your car into the water at the docks."

Tessa frowned. "I did."

"Lucky for you, a few workers saw it and called it in and pulled you from the water. Do you remember why you drove into the water?"

Tessa looked at the woman. She couldn't tell her the _whole_ truth. She decided to tell her a whitewashed version. "I was having a hard time, I felt a bit overwhelmed." she paused. "I had just found out I was pregnant, and the baby's father was locked up." she paused when the doctors eyebrow raised slightly.

"I see. Was he aware of the pregnancy?" she asked.

"No, He got locked up before I even knew." she told her. "How long was I in the hospital? I noticed that I'm not ,um, bleeding down there and my bruises look almost healed."

The doctor grabbed her chart and looked. "You were unconscious almost a full week."

Tessa wasn't surprised. "Thanks." she said.

"Tell me about that day. Was there anything in particular that pushed you to take that drive?"

Tessa thought about it. "I was hot, and in pain. The water looked cold, I know it doesn't make much sense now, but it seemed like the thing to do. I didn't plan to kill me," she paused, "Or my baby." her chest felt hollow.

The doctor was writing, then spoke again. "Where did you get the scar?" she asked.

Tessa hadn't even realized she'd been stroking the raised scar through her shirt. She pulled her hand away quickly and felt her face blush.

"It was a gift." she said.

"A gift? From you boyfriend?"

"He's not my boyfriend." she said automatically. "Not really. But yea, he has one too." she said. From the odd look on the doctors face she wished she hadn't added that last bit. Her throat felt dry and tight. "Can I have some water?" she asked.

"Sure." The doctor got up and moved to a minifridge and pulled out a small bottle of water.

Tessa thanked her for the drink. She sipped the cold water and almost sighed out loud.

"Do you want to talk about the miscarriage?"

"No." she did NOT want to talk about how she had murdered her baby.

"Okay, do you live near the docks?" she asked.

"Not really." Tessa knew her ID had a bogus address on it. She didn't want this lady or anyone else near her and Joker's place. She wondered if she might run into him? This was not good.

"Do you have a job? Any family we can contact?" she asked.

"I am a waitress, or well, I was a waitress. But no, I don't have any family." She said.

"Tessa I want to help you. I need you to trust me. Nothing you say will leave this office. I only give my expert opinion. I do not disclose what you say to me." The doctor seemed to be slightly agitated. Tessa smiled at that.

"Sorry doc." she said.

"Harleen. Harley for short." she said to Tessa.

Tessa nodded. Harley continued. "Your ID says you are 18. That's a bit young to be on your own. Do you want to talk about that?"

"Nothing to talk about. I was raised in the system, not here in Gotham. I got mixed up with bad people and when I had the chance I bolted. I made it here to Gotham and have been surviving ever since."

"How long? On your own I mean?" She asked as she made notes.

"Like, two and a half years."

"That had to have been tough." She paused. "Were you alone?"

She sipped her water. "Up until recently, yea." she answered then frowned. This woman would not get her talking about Joker.

"What did you just think about? Your whole demeanor changed."

"Am I in here with the criminals? I heard The Scarecrow and The Joker were here." Tessa tried to sound frightened, not curious.

"We have a few here, but they are in the high security wing. Nowhere near here. You are in the minimum security wing." She explained.

"Oh, that's good." Tessa said, actually telling the truth.

"Back to you, Tessa, do you have future plans?" she asked.

She really thought about it before answering. "Honestly, I don't know. After the baby news, I kind of shut down. I felt lost, you know. But, I guess that's all changed again." She felt the tears threaten to fall.

"It's a traumatic experience, it's okay to feel lost. To feel unsure." She handed Tessa a tissue.

The doc was writing furiously, the sound of the pen on the paper made Tessa want to scream. She just wanted to go home. This place was not what she needed.

"I wouldn't hurt myself on purpose." She blurted out, causing the pen scratching to stop.

"Tessa, I'm going to be direct with you. You drove yourself into very deep, very cold water. We need to figure out why, and make sure it wont happen again." She paused. "Tomorrow I'd like to try guided hypnosis, Maybe we could-"

"No." Tessa felt the panic in her chest. No one was getting all access pass into her mind.

"I understand your reluct-"

"No!" she said more firmly.

The doctors shoulders slumped slightly. "Okay, maybe another time."

"Do you love anybody? Not family I mean." Tessa asked catching the doctor off guard.

Harley looked at the girl. "Yea, I do. I just recently met a guy and it's a good feeling." she admitted. "Do you?"

"Unfortunately, yea." she said.

"The baby's father?" Harley asked.

"Yea, I don't think he wants kids, you know. He's kind of -" she cut herself off.

"I understand, I'm not sure if my boyfriend wants kids either. He has a pretty hectic lifestyle."

Tessa chuckled at that. "Exactly."

Harley smiled, pleased to have finally connected with the girl. She watched Tessa absentmindedly rub the scar again. The fact niggling the back of her mind for some reason. "I think that's good for today. I'll have the orderly take you to lunch then back to your room.

Harley pressed the small button and after a few minutes the orderly arrived to take Tessa away.

...

* * *

...

Joker couldn't find her. She dropped off the face of the planet. He had been scouring the city for over a week, no one had seen her. He'd even cornered the bum she liked so much. Nothing. He'd thrown himself into his usual mess. Explosions here, Gassed crowds there. If he hadn't been looking for his girl, he'd have enjoyed it more.

He returned home each night covered in blood and couldn't find any joy in it. He had the guys keep an eye out for her car, but it was gone too. When he got his hands on her, he would strangle the life out of her. He thought she was like him, but she wasn't. She was like the rest of them, the users.

He was in the shower when he had an epiphany, he was an idiot. He hurried and got out. Dressing himself quickly he made a call to an old _friend_.

The phone picked up on the third ring. "Hello?"

"It's me. I need a favor."

"What kind of favor?"

"Can you track a car GPS?"

"Of course I can, I just need the info on the car."

"I'll have my guy bring all the car's paperwork by. I owe you one, Eddy."

"Yes, Joker you do."

Joker hated owing anyone anything. The thought was sickening, but he wanted to find Tessa. When he did, he'd take it out on her.

"I will get the information, it should take a few hours at most."

"Perfect, call me when you have it."

Joker hung up and called the warehouse.

"Boss?"

"Go in my office and grab the file on Tessa's car, take it over to Nigma's place."

"Anything else?"

"No. just get it done."

"On it,"

Joker hung up and tossed the phone down on the bed before collapsing onto it. He decided to take a nap while he waited.

* * *

**moving right along ;)**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: session two has big revelations y'all….**

* * *

_~Tell me all that you've thrown away,_

_ Find out games you don't want to play,_

_ You are the only one that needs to know,_

_ I'll keep you my dirty little secret~_

_~All American Rejects~_

* * *

Breakfast sat on Tessa's belly like lead. She ate slowly and once she had finished the watery eggs and toast, the orderly moved her to the doctor's office. Like the day before, the orderly knocked and they waited.

The doctor opened the door and let Tessa in. She was smiling though not as chipper as the day before. Tessa sat on the small couch and waited. The doctor spoke into the recorder again. She set the small object down and turned her attention to Tessa.

"I'd like to start where we left off yesterday." Harley told her

Tessa felt her stomach drop. She's going to bug her about Joker. She knew it. Tessa had no idea why this was so important to the doc. Surely Tessa was not the only girl with a guy who was locked up. What did it matter?

"First things first, how are you feeling?" she asked.

"Tired, but better." She said, voice still scratchy but louder than the barely there whisper like before.

"Good. Since you haven't given me a name to call him, humor me. You live with your _boyfriend_?" She asked.

Tessa could feel her teeth grinding. "Yes, but he's been locked up for the past month or so." she said.

"What does he do for a living?"

"What does that have to do with anything?" She asked, instantly on the defense.

"These are questions about your home life. They will give me an idea of your home situation."

Tessa sighed, what should she classify as Joker's job? "He mostly does demolition."

Harley was writing. "And you are a waitress?"

"Yep."

Harley wrote for a minute. She looked up and just stared at Tessa for a second. "Do remember the actual drive to the pier?"

Tessa frowned. "Yea, but not like I was driving, it was more like I was watching myself driving there."

Harley raised the pen, writing while still having her eyes on Tessa. "How do you feel here at Arkham?" she asked.

Tessa shrugged. "Alone, cold, scared, bored. Take your pick I just want to go home. I hate it here." She said, hating the way it sounded like whining.

"Why scared?"

"Well, you know, there are criminals here, what if one tried to escape and killed everybody."

Harley's eyes narrowed slightly. "The only criminal who has tried to escape, did so a week before you were brought here."

Tessa was surprised. "They can actually escape?" she felt true panic. She had to run as soon as she got out. Far from Gotham.

"The Joker has been the only successful escape, and he didn't injure anyone on his way out. He had someone infiltrate the facility as an employee, then they switched places with him. It was quite ingenious actually." Harley looked almost proud.

Tessa schooled her features. Joker wasn't even here. He was going to kill her. She couldn't waist a second. As soon as the ink was dry on her release papers she was gone. She had no choice.

"Is there anything you need to talk about? You look very worried."

Tessa sucked in a breath and started to talk. "I don't know, I just want to go home. I don't want to be here, I don't want to die. I just want to go home.

She hated the hot tear that scorched her cheek. The doctor grabbed a tissue and moved to sit next to her. She handed Tessa the tissue and took her other hand. The contact sent her into full blown crying.

"It's ok, let it out. This is good. Tell me what's bothering you right now."

Tessa blew her nose in the tissue and looked over at the doctor. She wanted to tell her everything, but she knew she couldn't.

"I just, well, so much has happened, sometimes I just want to go back. Back to before. I had my own shitty little place and I was a decent waitress. I was happy enough. But he showed up and I fell so hard for him. I almost hate him for it. " she grabbed another tissue from the doctor. "It was my fault, I knew better, after Parker, I knew."

"Who is Parker?"

Tessa looked at the doc. She refused to tell her about Joker, but she could tell her all about Parker. Tessa told her the whole story, from the kiss to the hospital stay. Harley rubbed small circles on her back to comfort her.

She had calmed down slightly and Harley reached for Tessa's file. She thumbed through it and Tessa caught sight of a picture of herself. She was in the hospital bed, She looked dead, the breathing tub in, her face slightly swollen and bruised. She almost choked on air when she saw the red face paint still on her face.

She remembered now, putting on the paint. Shit. Harley's voice pulled her from her panic.

"I don't see any of this in your file." She said.

"It wasn't here. You are the only person I have told since I moved to Gotham." she confessed.

"So your boyfriend now, he hurts you like Parker did?"

"No, he's never hurt me."

"You said, yesterday, that he cut that scar into your chest."

"It was a gift." Tessa defended.

Harley looked at her skeptically. Tessa could feel the waves of judgement flowing from the woman.

Tessa groaned, "I wish he'd never brought his stupid, painted face into the diner." Tessa realized she had said that out loud when she heard the sharp intake of breath.

Harley said nothing, she stood up and walked back to her chair. Harley looked at the girl as she cleaned the tears from her face. Surely she didn't mean who she was assuming. She needed to hear her say it. There was no way Joker would touch her. She was practically a child. She was pathetic.

"It's ok Tessa, I told you, this is a safe place. You are doing so well. Trust me." She needed the girl to say it. She didn't want to believe any of this.

Tessa wanted to trust her, or anyone. Maybe it would be good to get it off her chest. She swallowed. "About two months ago, I was at work. He showed up with a few guys. I had no clue who he was. I don't watch TV. He ate dinner and had a fucking milkshake." she paused.

Harley was listening intently. She wasn't even writing anything anymore.

"I guess I'd made him laugh, he tipped me a lot of money, then left. The next time I seen him he was _hurt_. I took him to my place and stitched him up." The words stuck in her throat.

Harley was seeing red. She tried to stay calm. She got up and got the girl a water. She handed her the bottle and sat back down.

Tessa took a large drink and continued her story. "I helped him find his way back to his place. It wasn't too far from mine." she sipped that water again. "It moved pretty quickly from there." She didn't even realize she'd been rubbing the scar again.

Harley was livid. The girl still hadn't said the name. Harley had to hear her say it. She waited patiently.

"He had a job to do and left. He got caught and has been locked up."

"Does he know you are here?" Harley knew he didn't, but had to play dumb.

"No, I don't think so."

"What's his name, Tessa?" Harley pushed.

Tessa went pale, she shook her head. "No, I can't." her eyes shot over to the recorder.

Harley followed the movement. She smiled and grabbed the recorder. She turned it off.

"You can trust me, off the record, I want to help you, but you have to trust me." Harley wanted to slap the girl until she spit the name out.

Tessa looked at the Doctor. "Our secret?" she asked.

Harley nodded. "Our secret."

Tessa wanted someone to know, she ached to say the name and get it off of her conscious. The doctor watched her as she debated with herself. She could leave tomorrow, she could have a fresh start, she'd done it before.

"The Joker" she said voice barely audible.

Harley felt her blood turn to ice, then lava. "See, do you feel better?"

Tessa almost laughed. She had expected the doctor to fly off the handle. "A little yea."

"Good, I believe we have had a real breakthrough on your road to recovery." She stood and buzzed for the orderly. "Go back to your room and rest, doctor's orders."

Once the orderly took Tessa from the room. Harley grabbed everything not bolted down and threw it all over the room. She moved to her file cabinet an pulled Joker's file. She searched through the endless stack of papers and photos. During his intake, he had too many scars to mark the paper, so they took a picture. There plain as day, on his chest was a carved 'T'.

Harley felt a calm wave wash over her. She put the folder back carefully and sat at her desk. She had a lot of work to do, there was no way this girl was going to be released. She could not be allowed to go back to the Joker. Mr. J was hers. She started the paperwork with her evaluation. Her face hurt from the smile she had plastered on her face.

...

* * *

...

Joker laughed, he'd been angry for no reason. Tessa hadn't run away. He'd gotten the call about her car. It was currently in GCPD impound. That had intrigued him. He had Eddy check police records, She hadn't been arrested. She'd been committed. The laugher almost hurt.

He had found out she'd driven off the pier. The realization that she'd been the reason for the lights at the dock when he'd come home made him laugh harder. Joker loved a good joke, obviously. He read through the file Eddy had printed for him. She had been in a medically induced coma for a week. Blah blah blah. What brought the laugher back was she'd been shipped to Arkham. She'd be out soon, it was just a 72 hour hold.

Tessa wasn't crazy, they wouldn't have any reason to hold her. Joker scanned the medical records and froze when he saw the signature on the page. Dr. Quinzel. _That _could be a problem. The doc was a lunatic. He frowned at the papers now. Tessa was smart, she wouldn't tell anyone about them. She'd be out in a day or so. He'd find her and bring her home.

...

* * *

...

Tessa woke from her nap, that turned into a heavy sleep, to the sound of her door opening. She sat up, trying to focus on the shadows coming through the door. She recognized Nurse Ortiz, and her usual orderly. The other two were new. She rubbed her eyes and stood up. "Am I being released?" she asked the nurse.

The woman looked at her, but didn't speak. The orderly walked up and held up a large piece of fabric. "Let's go, we need to move you." he slid the fabric up her arms. It was scratchy against her skin. Tessa looked down and realized they were strapping her into a straightjacket.

"I won't fight, you don't have to do this." She lifted her arms to gesture to the jacket.

"It's policy." he said.

This all seemed strange, 'why would they restrain me if they are just gonna turn around and release me?' she thought to herself.

Once she was restrained, they started walking her down the hallway. She started to worry when they moved to an elevator. She didn't remember an elevator when she arrived. She began to squirm, the feeling of claustrophobia starting to take her over. The doors opened, she stumbled out, the orderly catching her before she fell. This was not right, she was what looked like a basement, but all metal. The large room was lined with cells. Each cell had a Plexiglas door with small airholes. She felt the panic attack starting. She needed to go. She didn't belong here. This wasn't right.

She was shoved into a small room. She fell, unable to catch herself, her teeth cutting her lip as she hit the ground. The blood filled her mouth and she felt sick. She heard the whoosh of the door closing and the steps retreating. They were leaving her here, helpless.

* * *

**...poor Tessa...**


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: ahem...enjoy...or don't...**

* * *

_~A maniac messiah, d__estruction is his game,_

_A beautiful liar, a love for him is pain~_

_~30 Seconds to Mars~_

* * *

Tessa was floating, her body weightless, her mind felt fuzzy. She liked the numb feeling, she tried to turn her head, see where she was floating, but her head wouldn't move. She giggled. She stared at the bright light above her, was it the sun? She felt a tiny sliver of panic, then the giggle again. There was no heat, it wasn't the sun. She was being silly. She felt a cool pressure at her temples. She could hear mumbles and then nothing.

Tessa woke up in her bed, she couldn't remember where she was. She looked around, her muscles sore. She was on a tiny bed, to her left was a silver toilet and sink combo. The sight made her laugh. Above that bolted to the wall, was a metal mirror. A small shelf held an extremely short toothbrush and nothing else. To her right was a clear door. She moved to the door and looked around. Lots of similar doors were along the edges of the room.

In the middle of the big room was a guard at a desk covered in flashy buttons. The silence was deafening. Tessa moved back to her bed and sat down. She was missing something. Something important. She couldn't remember a lot. When she tried she'd get bad headaches. She just remembers waking up in the small room.

She wasn't even sure how long she'd been in there. Hours? Days? Years? No clue. No one spoke to her. Well, except the blonde lady, the doctor. Tessa couldn't remember her name, it was weird. The doctor came and asked her strange questions, and usually smiled at her answers.

A tray was pushed into her room through the sliding drawer on the plastic door. Tessa walked over and picked up the tray, PB&J. She ate quickly, then put the tray back in the slider. She hated it here.

...

* * *

...

Joker was not happy. Tessa should have been released weeks ago, and Arkham had no records of her still being there. Even had release papers on file, but Joker had checked, comparing "Tessa's" signature on the forms to her signature on her drawings. They were complete opposites. The form had big loopy letters. Tessa's work had small pointed letters slanted to the right.

She had to still be at Arkham. Joker was sure of it, he would find out where. He had to have someone on the inside snoop around, he was not about to be thrown back in there.

...

* * *

...

Tessa was watching her the doc write on a piece of paper. She felt her fingers itching, she wanted to draw, she felt like she needed to draw.

"Hey doc, can I get something to draw with? I'm bored in here, and I've been good." she asked.

The blond woman looked up, locking eyes with her. She was silent to the point Tessa just new she would say no. She looked down at her hands, hoping to hide the disappointment.

"I'll see what I can do." She said.

Tessa looked up smiling big, "Thanks doc."

The next day, Tessa was given paper and a box of crayons. She was happy, it was better than nothing. She laid down on the cold floor and started drawing instantly. The picture was crude and the colors were slightly off, but she looked at the face of an old man.

She didn't know him, but she felt like she did. She smiled as tears slid down her face. She set the paper down and cracked her stiff knuckles. it felt good to draw, she felt better. She walked her cell, stealing glances at the picture. All too soon it was time for lights out. That night she dreamt of that old man.

When she woke up she remembered his name. Earl, the old man was Earl. She'd seen flashes of other faces too, but not enough to draw them. She smiled at the picture of Earl and set it aside to show the doc.

She was floating again, the same strange feelings of weightlessness and thoughts of melting into the sun. The same cool touch to her temples. The same blackness and pain. She woke up again with sore muscles and a headache.

She got up and drank water from the sink, she felt like she hadn't had water in ages. She moved back to her bed and laid there. Once the headache started to go away, she decided to draw again. She grabbed her small stack of paper and box of nearly gone crayons.

She sat on the floor and began to draw. She didn't have too much solid thought or direction. She let her fingers move how they wanted. The more she drew her heart hammered in her chest. The picture was frightening, she'd never drawn anything as morbid before, she just knew it. She was worried, if the doc saw this, she'd take away her paper.

She folded the picture and tucked it under the frame of her bed, wedged into place. _No one_ could see that one. She put away the art and waited for dinner. She ate a few bites of the food and brushed her teeth. She laid down and quickly fell asleep. She dreamt of the picture she drew, kind of.

She was in a dark restaurant, and a man was telling her about another guy. A bad guy, that he had murdered. It was weird. She couldn't see this man, and he spoke funny. His words had the wrong inflections, syllables cut into the wrong parts. It was captivating. She couldn't _not_ listen.

She woke up feeling very strange. It was still a bit dark outside the cell, she slid down and under the bed, pulling out the picture she'd tucked away. She unfolded it and looked again. The body was strung up, arms and legs straight down and bloody gaping wounds riddled the body. A large smile on his face. She thought before that it had been drawn on, but after the dream she knew the truth. It was carved into his face. Forever.

She heard the buzzing of the lights turning on and hurriedly put away the picture and climbed back up to her bed. After the head count, breakfast was served. Tessa ate it, and quickly readied for her doc to visit.

...

* * *

...

Joker hadn't had any luck, his guy inside wasn't able to find anything on his girl. If she was still there, and he knew she was, they had to have her in the high security area. There was no way he could get in there, again. His guys before had his doctor's help to get access to trade him and the other guy out. He couldn't use the doc to save Tessa. He growled to himself.

He hated that he was considering asking for help, again. But this time he had to be careful about it. The Bats didn't like talking to him, he only liked the pain. Usually Joker was fine with that, but he needed for the Bat to hear him. It might work, if he'd listen, Batman was always a sucker for the damsel in distress.

...

* * *

...

The doc was not as happy as Tessa thought she'd be with her remembering Earl.

"Is this the only thing you can remember?" she asked.

"Yea, I don't know how I know him, but I know his name is Earl." she paused. "And he likes coffee."

The doc watched her. Then smiled. "This is great Tessa. I want you to keep drawing, do you need more supplies?" she asked.

Tessa was so happy, "Yes, my crayons are almost gone, pencils would be better, or markers? maybe?"

"I'll see what I can do." the blonde stood and turned to leave. "let me know if you remember more, okay?"

"Sure doc."

Tessa was feeling better, She had less angry moments. She was sleeping better. She liked her dreams now. She liked the shadowed man's voice. Sometimes it was high pitched and nasally, sometimes it was deep and serious. She liked it, and it scared her. She wanted to see more, but he was always a shadow.

She was sure she would remember, eventually. She had nothing but time apparently. She smiled and waited. She had the same lunch as every other day. She sat by her cell door she could almost hear other people. Before dinner she could hear her doctors steps. The click-clack of her high heels.

She stood when the doctor was at the door. She put more paper and a box of colored pencils in the cubby. Tessa couldn't believe it.

"Keep up the art, it could really help you remember. If you do remember anything, write it on the back of the picture." She told Tessa.

"Sure, I can do that." Tessa couldn't wait to start.

She waited patiently for the doc to leave and tore into the supplies. She felt that tingle in her fingers again. She started drawing, as the picture came alive she was surprised. It was a face, it was a boy, he looked young. He looked familiar, but she couldn't place it. She put her pencils away.

She spent the afternoon and part of the evening, staring at the picture. She put the picture away and laid down for bed. She dreamt of him that night. She still didn't know his name, but she remembered pain. she remembered hurting.

When she woke up, she started writing the few things she remembered on the back of the picture. She smiled, the doc would be so happy with her. She put it all away and waited for breakfast.

...

* * *

...

Joker was continuing his normal business, keeping his guys busy. He'd spent all his free time trying to het ahold of the Bat. It wasn't _easy_. It had been his main goal for the last year. He sent small messages with his little explosions, he just wouldn't take the bait. Joker decided he would have to just _up_ his game.

...

* * *

...

It had taken Tessa a while but she had figured it out. She was being given ECT. The guard was talking to his replacement and Tessa overheard them.

"They will be by in morning to take the little one to shock therapy." He said.

Tessa was confused, she was sure that they were talking about her. The doc was literally frying her brain. The anger that had run through her burned her. She thought the doc was helping her. Every time they shocked her, she forgot a bit more. How long had they been doing this. She had fractured memories of her childhood.

She decided to only show the doc the boring pictures. If they were important, they were secret. She had recently started drawing a picture. It was disturbing. It was a deranged, scratchy image. She looked at the face, it was scary. She hid it with the others. She couldn't remember anything about the person.

Her dreams were spastic, hardly making any sense. Flashes of _his_ face. Flashes of them _together_. She didn't even know who he is. She wrote down some, things that she did know and kept them hidden. She didn't trust her doctor anymore.

...

* * *

...

Joker had finally found him, It had taken his literally setting fire to a building in the shape of a bat. He giggled at the entire idea. He made his own bat signal and it worked! He was tucked back a few building tops away and in touch by walkie talkie. He watched the dark shadow swoop in and land on the roof.

"Batsy?" he spoke into the device. There was silence as he watched the bat walk over to the one on his roof.

"Joker?" Batman practically growled.

"_You_, oh, you are a hard _man_ to get ahold of. I've been leaving you _love_ notes all over the city." He couldn't help the teasing.

"What do you want? I can give you a lift back to Arkham."

Joker broke out into laughter. The batman did have a sense of humor. "Oh, Batsy, it's too soon for another, uh, _date_. Besides I have _real_ business to talk about."

"I have no business with you clown."

"There is a girl, an _innocent_ girl. She's run amok of some foul play and she need your _help_." He waited for a response.

"Who?" Joker smiled. This is why he loved _his_ batman, he was steadfast a hero. He couldn't wait until the moment he could break him completely. But not today, today Joker _needed_ the hero in the mask.

"A waitress that had the misfortune of helping me. After our fight at _Prewitt_, She stitched me up. While I was locked up, she had a small _accident_. Somehow she landed in Arkham." Joker had to pause, pushing down the anger. "She's been misplaced. Inside."

"If she's in Arkham maybe she should stay there." Batman said.

"No, not her. She's not Arkham material. She's good. Just check it out. Her file is there under the brick."

There was silence, Joker looked through his binoculars and watched batman looking. Good, he was taking this seriously.

"This say's she's been released." Batman growled.

"It's _wrong_. I wanted to give you a chance to save her, my next step is blowing the building sky high." Joker growled into the device.

"I will check it out." batman paused, "Cool it with the calling cards."

"There is a number written on the folder, call it if you, uh, _need_ me." Joker said. He tossed the walkie talkie over the edge and left.

* * *

**...hehehehe….**


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: ZOMG so much happeningness in this one...**

* * *

_ ~Two can play,_

_this game,_

_we both want,_

_ power,_

_in winter,_

_ we can taste,_

_the pain.~_

_~Alien Ant Farm~_

* * *

Bruce Wayne was frowning at the file in front of him. He'd gone over it thoroughly, it all seemed to check out. He had been ready to walk away and alert the Asylum of the threat from Joker, until he decided to check the girls financials. She owned a car that was still in the police impound. And her bank account hadn't been touched since her 'accident'.

That seemed _strange_. He sighed loudly, he would need to do an impromptu check on his investments at Arkham. He hated that place. He buzzed his secretary.

"Mary?"

"Yes, Mr. Wayne?"

"I need you to phone Arkham, tell them I will be stopping by shortly for a tour of the facility. To see how they are spending my money." he said.

"Anything else?"

"No, Thank you Mary."

He got up and started to make his way to the garage to take a trip to the Asylum.

...

* * *

...

Tessa was having a strange dream, one with the man again, but things were different. He looked the same, but he was wearing make up. She hurried to her supplies. She was moving frantically. She had to get the memory on paper, before the doc zapped it away. It was a few hours until they would take her. She had to put it all down.

She didn't touch her meager breakfast, she worked fast, wanting to get as much down on the paper as she could. She heard the click clack of the docs shoes. She hurriedly put away the important pictures. leaving out ones she didn't care about. A car, a ratty apartment, she pretended to be working on that one.

"Good morning, Time for treatment." the cheery voice of her doc sounded muffled through the Plexiglas door.

She set the art stuff on the bed and stood up. The orderlies came in and put her in the wheelchair, strapping her to the arm rests. She hoped she'd remember all of this, but she doubted it.

They made their way to the treatment room, a nurse giving her an injection. Tessa felt the world grow fuzzy. This felt familiar. She felt herself being moved. The bright light, bright as the sun. The thought made her giggle.

...

* * *

...

It was mid afternoon when Bruce arrived at the doors to Arkham. He checked in at the front desk and waited for his escort. The small woman appeared and led him to her office.

"I'm Dr. Leland. We were surprised you would come visit in person." She smiled.

"I just want to make sure the money my company donates is being put to good use. The paperwork said it was being used to strengthen the security in the violent offender ward?"

"Yes, we have updated the entire security system, and remodeled all of the cells. They are basically escape proof." she said, smile still in place.

"I'd love to see it in person." Bruce smiled back. He was aware the Joker had escaped just fine.

"Mr. Wayne, I'm not sure that's a good idea, we have a few hardened criminals residing on that wing of the building. It's not safe." she said sounding panicked.

"Please, call me Bruce, And the updates should have it as safe as any other part of the building. I need to see it for myself. Then I can personally assure the board at Wayne Enterprises that their decision to continue funding is the right one." he said.

The woman looked taken aback, but relented. "If you insist, but keep in mind, these patients are extremely dangerous. You mustn't get too close to the actual occupied cells."

"Not a problem." He stood, ready to go.

The woman followed suit and headed to the door. Bruce was bored out of his mind for majority of the tour. When they finally arrived at the high security area, he perked up. He needed to get a look here.

Joker figured this was where the girl was, Bruce had stared at the picture memorizing her face on his way over. Bruce followed the doctor into the area and waited for the door to close behind him.

"This is where majority of the donations went. This door," she pointed to the one in front of them, "Will only unlock if the previous one is closed. To prevent people 'piggybacking' into a restricted area. We then have a code to get into this door." she moved and put in the code. the light turned green and the door clicked.

They made their way into the large room, Bruce glanced around, there were cells along both walls of the room, with a guard station dead center. He turned his attention back to the doctor as she explained the different security features of the room.

Bruce began walking along the red painted caution line in front of the cells. Most were empty, a couple were occupied, both by men, on the left side. "Is this a co-ed ward?" he asked.

The doctor giggled. "This is, though we try to keep the man and women as separated as possible. At the moment we only have two female patients, both on the other side."

He needed to get a look without arousing her suspicion. He walked to the other side while asking his question. "Are the cells set up the same?" he asked.

"Yes basically the same."

Bruce froze when he seen her. The girl he was looking for was asleep on her bed, She looked a bit thinner than the picture but it was her. The number on her door, he memorized it quickly and turned.

"Well, doctor, I am more than satisfied that our investment has been well spent. Please, if you are ready to go, so am I."

"Wonderful. I will walk you out."

Bruce drove to the bat cave, like, well, a bat out of hell. He pulled up his computer and started an Arkham search for the patient number he had memorized.

It took a few minutes and there she was.

Jane Doe, paranoid schizophrenic, age 18, female 5'3" 115lbs. That was it, all the info they had on her. He pulled up the photo that was in Contessa's file. This was the same girl. He needed to get to the bottom of this. He looked at the file folder and sighed. He should probably call and make sure Joker wouldn't blow the place up.

...

* * *

...

Joker was at his warehouse, waiting by the phone, he knew Batsy wouldn't let him down. He could feel it in his bones. He must have dozed off at some point, the shrill ring of the phone woke him. He jumped high enough he hit his knee on the desk.

He grabbed the receiver. "Batsy?"

"I found her, let me get her out."

"Why should I let you have _all_ the fun?" Joker smiled.

"You pulled me into this, let me do it my way first. If I fail then we can talk."

Joker almost wanted him to fail, he liked having Batman calling him. They were becoming friends he could feel it. "I don't know, how can I trust you not to hurt the girl?" he asked, holding back his laughter at the absurd question.

"Who is she? to you I mean?"

"A _friend_." he said voice serious. " A good friend, and we all know _good_ friends are hard to find. You _think_ you have a friend and they knock you out and leave you at the police station. It just breaks your heart. But Tessa is a good friend. The _best_ friend. Get her out will ya? Then you and me, well, I'll call us even for the _betrayal_ and everything Batsy."

"I will try to get her out, for her, not you. You and I will never be even." Batman hung up.

Joker smiled, he knew he could count on the bat. He hung up the receiver and started to laugh. He laughed until he cried.

...

* * *

...

Tessa woke up, brain fuzzy and her body stiff. She hated this feeling, she still remembered the ECT. She moved her arms, the heavy felling slowly leaving her. She slowly sat up, Her dinner was in the tray at her door. She wasn't hungry. She waited, watching for them to take the tray. She didn't have to wait long.

The food was removed and the man walked away with her tray. She moved as soon as he was out of sight. She moved under the bed and smiled. Her drawings were still there. She pulled them out and moved into the small bit of light she had. She looked at the face on the piece of paper in front of her. She knew this man, she wasn't sure how, but she remembered the grease paint on his face. She rubbed her fingers together, remembering the feel of it between her fingers.

She stared at the face until lights out, She put the pages away and crawled into her bed. She wasn't sleepy, but it was too dark to do anything other than try to sleep. To her surprise, she fell asleep fairly quickly. She dreamt of pizza. She was talking and eating a calzone. When she woke the next morning, she was starving.

...

* * *

...

Dr. Harleen Quinzel was livid. She had backed herself into a figurative corner. The girl was becoming a burden, especially now that she was remembering things. Harley was sure that the girl didn't remember what happened to her here, otherwise she wouldn't be cooperative. She glanced at the drawings on her desk. The girl had talent.

Even the crayon drawing was impressive. The others were not anything too telling. There was a picture of her car, the old man, a diner with no name. She pushed the papers into a folder and hid them in her desk.

Harley was angry at herself, she was taking out her frustrations with the two timing jerk, on a poor girl. She was angry at Joker for lying to her. For leading her on. She was angry at the girl for catching Mr. J's eye. For touching him, for marking him. She had decisions to make. She had to take care of the girl, one way or another.

The girl was fairly harmless, maybe Harley could just release her, declare her sane and boot her out to be swallowed up by Gotham. She smiled. Maybe that was the best idea. She would probably be dead in a week. Harley grabbed the paperwork she needed and started the discharge process.

...

* * *

...

Tessa was wide awake and pacing her cell. The Doc hadn't come to see her yet, so she was too scared to start drawing. She wanted to work more on the picture of the scary faced man. She remembered a tiny bit more detail. She panicked when she heard the click clack of her doctor's shoes along with the quick steps of someone else.

"Good morning, how are you feeling today?" her doc asked her.

"Fine. What's with him?" she asked.

"I have good news. You are being released this afternoon. You will be escorted to the infirmary for a discharge exam, then given your person effects from before you were checked in. The hospital will pay for a cab ride back into Gotham. You are free to go." she smiled at her.

Tessa was elated, and then scared. "Are you sure? I still can't remember too much."

"Absolutely, you may have some memory issues, but you are sane. You don't belong here anymore." She said her voice overly sweet.

Tessa nodded. "Okay doc."

"Now if you will follow Nick, he will take you to the infirmary and get this started." Harley said.

Tessa felt panicked, she wanted her pictures, but didn't want the doc to see them. She was upset at leaving the pictures there, but was happy to be getting out. She could draw more later.

She followed the nice orderly to the infirmary and was given a clean bill of health. She felt strange putting on real clothes. They were a little big on her but she had expected as much. The food at Arkham was horrible.

She looked at the metal mirror in the large shower room. She was dressed and had just combed through her horrible frizzy hair. She frowned at the sight. That had to be fixed. She moved to the door and let the orderly know she was ready. The walk to the reception area was eerie. She stepped out of the front door with a voucher from the hospital. The cab was waiting, she had to cover her eyes from the sun. It was so bright her poor eyes felt like they had a pulse.

The throb eventually stopped, letting her enjoy the ride back to the city. She pulled her wallet from the small bag of personal effects and looked at the contents. She had an ID, she had a Debit card, but she didn't know the PIN number. She had a few bucks. No family photos, no super personal items at all. She frowned.

The cab stopped in front of a seedy looking motel and she got out. She had tipped the guy the cash she had in the wallet. She booked her a room at the motel, just for the night. She didn't plan on staying longer than that. She got to the room and first thing she did was order a pizza. While waiting she took a _hot_ shower.

...

* * *

...

Harley was at her desk, enjoying the freedom from guilt. She had helped the girl really. If it happened to also help her that was just icing on the cake. The girl was young, she didn't need to be involved with a man like her Mr. J. He needed a woman to handle him.

A knock on the door interrupted her musings. "Come in."

The door opened, and in walked Nick. "Dr. Quinzel, I wasn't sure what you wanted me to do with these?" He asked handing her several drawings. She frowned, but took the pages. "Found them when we cleaned the girl's cell."

"Thanks, Nick."

The man left and Harley tossed the pages in the trash. She didn't need or want them. She was about to leave her office when a dark page caught her eye. She moved back to the bin and grabbed the papers. She shuffled through then until she found the dark one. It was a man, hung up almost like a scarecrow, a large red smile across his face. Harley frowned at the paper. She turned it over, nothing written on it. She moved to the next page and gasped.

A make up free Joker was looking at her. The scars plain on his face, the eyes wild and bright. Her stomach plummeted. The little bitch remembered, but hid this from her. She should have just killed her. I would have been easy. She turned the page and saw scratchy hand writing. Small notes about the drawing. She moved to the last in the bunch and couldn't stop the scream of frustration. It was Joker, smeared make up on his face, the look on his face grotesquely beautiful. Harley tore the pages into pieces. She would kill her, she would find the girl and strangle her with her bare hands.

* * *

**...uh oh...**


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: here we fucking go...**

* * *

_~One look, So strong, so delicate,_

_I'm,_

_ Trying to hold it together,_

_ Head is lighter than a feather,_

_Looks like I'm not getting better, _

_Not getting better,_

_Wait,_

_I'm coming undone~_

_~KORN~_

* * *

As Tessa dreamed that night she learned more. When she woke up she was happy. She had a new start on her life. She dressed in the same clothes as before, and grabbed her things. She left the motel room and started walking. She headed down the street and towards a small shopping center. First things first, she bought clean clothes.

She went to drug store and used their restroom to change into some of the new clothes. She put the old ones in the trash. She stepped out and moved to buy some toiletries. She left the store and headed to the bank. She needed to check the account and change her pin number. She hurried down to the bank.

She was moved into a small office to wait. The office was surrounded by glass walls. She watched the movement of the people in the lobby. A man walked through the doors and sat at the desk.

"How can I help you today?" he asked.

"I need to reset my pin number and get a current print out of my account." she explained. She handed the man the debit card and her ID.

"No problem, give me just a second." He typed a bit on his computer and then she heard the printer whir to life. The man grabbed the papers and moved back to hand them to her. "Here is that, and if you would type a four digit number into the pad there." he pointed.

Tessa put in a 8377 TESS on the number pad. "And once more please." the man told her.

She reentered the number and it was done. She put away the card and her ID and picked up the papers. She couldn't believe how much she actually had in her account. She smiled, "Will you shred these for me please?" she asked and handed him back the papers.

"No problem, was there anything else you needed?" he asked.

"No." She turned and left the office. She was sure things would be fine. She walked out of the bank and into the crowded streets of Gotham.

...

* * *

...

Bruce Wayne had started his planning to rescue the girl. He had it planned. He would go in as Batman, but in possession of the codes needed to get in and out of the facility. He would knock anyone that was in his way, unconscious. It was simple. He pulled up the Arkham system again. The info flashed on his screen. An alert he set for any change in the status of the girls patient number.

He pulled up the alert. He laughed, he couldn't believe it. She had been released and deemed sane. He decided to give Joker the all clear. No need to have him blowing up the building for nothing.

He entered the phone number again and waited for the clown to pick up.

...

* * *

...

Joker was currently working on his back up plan. He was so enraptured in the process, he almost missed the, wonderfully named, 'Batphone" ringing. He picked up the receiver.

"Yes?"

"She's free."

Joker felt sad for a second. He knew the bat was vigilant, but that was really fast. "You got her out?" he asked with disbelief.

"No, her doctor, Quinzel I think, released her yesterday." Bruce heard the clown growl.

"How _wonderful_. Well, guess that means we _aren't_ even are we?" Joker said laughing.

"Joker, stop the madness. Turn yourself in." he insisted.

"No, Bats, I don't think I will. But I will tell you what _I_ will do, just for _you_. I will leave this line open for you if you ever want to have, you know, _girl_ _talk_." he hung up the phone and jumped up. He had to go home, what if Tessa was there?

He moved into the large area of the ware house. "Enjoy your evening boys, See ya tomorrow." he said and left.

He sped the entire was back to his place. He looked everywhere, there were no signs of her. She wasn't here. He frowned.

...

* * *

...

Tessa found a nicer hotel and paid for the week. She moved up to the room and ran a hot bath in the large tub. She relaxed into the water and sighed. This was more like it. She stretched her body out. Her muscles still felt tender from her last session of ECT. She let her mind wander back, back to the snip-its of memories she had. She decided she needed to write all this down.

She finished the bath and redressed. She hurried to the store. She grabbed a note book and pens. She turned to leave and couldn't help herself, she bought art supplies too. She paid for the items and hurried back to her rooms.

She moved to the table and pulled out the notebook and opened the pens. She started to write down all the things she remembered. After an hour she had filled the notebook about half way. She felt better looking at the memories. They were tangible now.

She put the notebook aside and grabbed her sketch book. She started on the face she had to leave behind. Hours later she stretched her back. She felt the vertebrae pop. She picked up the paper. The face was familiar. Harsh lines, dark eyes, and smeared make up all stared back at her.

She set the paper down and moved to wash her hands. She had color smeared across her fingertips. She watched the colors run down the drain, the swirl had her mesmerized. She pulled herself back to reality and finished washing her hands. She moved to the bed and switched on the TV.

Tessa lay there, she flipped through the channels. She couldn't find anything she wanted to watch. She continued switching the channels not really paying attention to much. She paused on a channel that had a story about Batman. She had a bad feeling in her gut and just turned the television off. She called room service and ordered food.

...

* * *

...

Joker was livid, he had been looking everywhere for Tessa. He had decided he would continue his reign of terror. He was setting up an impossible goal, with dire consequences for failure. The thought calmed him almost instantly.

He had the guys setting the stage. The kind citizens of Gotham would have some tough choices to make. He moved to his office and started the last few parts of the plan. Maybe it would even draw out the Bat. His eyes cut over to the phone he kept in his office now. He frowned, Batman hadn't called him. He wasn't really surprised, just a but sad.

That would all change, he had a video to shoot and needed to get ready for his audience. He grabbed the camera and moved to the stage room. This is where he made most of his videos for the people. He set up the tripod and attached the camera. He turned it on and looked at the small viewing screen. His make up was smudged all over, he smiled. Perfect.

...

* * *

...

Bruce Wayne sat in the batcave, in front of the large screen. He had put an alert for the girl's name. Contessa Marlin was currently staying in a posh hotel. She had used her debit card a few times, but has been laying low.

He had decided to watch her, Joker seemed unusually attached to her. Two days had passed, but the clown hadn't made contact with her. It struck him as strange. Joker had been desperate enough to ask him for help. The girl was more than a friend like Joker claimed. Maybe the clown couldn't find her.

Bruce hated the idea, but maybe he could use the girl as bait. If he could lure out the Joker, he could get him back to Arkham. His conscious yelled at him as he started to put together a plan. The girl had to stay oblivious. If she was remotely on Joker's side he couldn't risk her tipping him off.

Maybe he could stage a run in with her, see if she was as mentally healthy as Arkham claimed she was. Bruce doubted that fact, no one sane could have any type of 'friendship' with the maniac.

He pulled out his phone and made a reservation for a room at the same hotel that Tessa was staying. He could have a small chat and get the feel of her. Then he could decide if it would be smart to use her as bait.

...

* * *

...

Tessa was getting out of the room to get fresh air and a bit of exercise. The few days out of the hospital had done her good. She felt more human. She fixed her hair, had on a touch of make up. She felt great. She had a few flashes of memories come to her the night before and they had her feeling weird.

There were more of the man, sans make up. He gave her a strange feeling in her belly. She pushed the thoughts aside and went out onto the busy streets of Gotham. She looked around and decided to walk, she had nowhere to really be. She blended into the moving sea of people and enjoyed the sunlight on her face.

Bruce had checked into the Hotel and sat at the small bar off to the side of the lobby. He had a good view of the entrance. He sat there nursing his drink and dodging the women staring him down. He wasn't exactly low profile. He chuckled to himself.

He finally noticed the girl heading to the door. He left his seat, having already charged the drink to his room number. He followed slowly behind the small girl with the big hair. He watched as she wandered aimlessly through the streets. Bruce decided to head back to the hotel and conveniently bump into her there. It would be an easier story to sell.

Tessa was starting to get tired, she had been walking almost an hour. She was really out of shape after the confinement to that small cell. The entire 'visit' in the loony bin seemed weird to her. She knew now that the doc had not been her friend. But she was free, and she didn't want to dwell on it right now. She was hungry and a bit tired.

She stepped back into the hotel and almost instantly collided with a wall of a man. She landed on her ass and winced as the pain hit.

"I am so sorry, Miss, I didn't see you there." A large man with dark hair offered her a hand.

She reached for it and he lifted her like she weighed nothing. Tessa pulled her had from his and tried to keep from rubbing her now sore bottom.

"I'm Bruce Wayne, I truly am sorry." he smiled at her.

"Tessa." she said, not returning the smile.

Bruce fought not to frown, the girl was shooting daggers at him. He started to chuckle, she had no clue who he was.

"Are you staying here? At this hotel, I mean?" He asked.

"Why else would I be in the lobby?" she asked. She was obviously unamused.

"Sorry, I was jut curious, you seem kind of young to be able to afford a place like this." he said, trying to gauge her reaction.

"Not that it is any of your business, but I am not a child. I work and take care of myself just fine." She blurted, the nerve of this asshole judging her. She turned to head to her room.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to offend you." He told her back as she walked away. He laughed as she raised her hand and gave him the finger. He watched her until she disappeared into the elevator.

...

* * *

...

Tessa was happy to be back in her room, she ordered room service and took a quick shower as she waited for it to arrive. She ate the large plate of linguini and felt sadness building. She wasn't sure why but the food made her feel like she was missing something. She finished the meal and went straight to bed, hoping sleep would help her.

...

* * *

...

Bruce Wayne was sure she was not working with the Joker. He felt bad, but he decided to go ahead and use her for bait, he needed the Joker off the street. He started to put together a plan.

...

* * *

...

Joker was pleased with his latest bit of fun. The video was about to be sent to the news station. He had everything else in place. He just had to wait for morning to start his latest stunt.

...

* * *

...

Harleen Quinzel searched for the girl. The address on her ID was fake, she wasn't able to get any information from internet searches. The girl had no real trail to follow. She couldn't find Mr. J either. He was good at disappearing. all she could do was hope they weren't together. The thought made her feel sick.

* * *

**This story is so fun to write... **


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: warning adult situations ahead...….**

* * *

_~And every time I see,_

_you in my dream,_

_ I see your face,_

_you're haunting me, _

_I guess I need you baby~_

_~Britney Spears~ _

* * *

It was all over the news, Tessa was staring at the screen. It was _him_. She had flipped on the TV that morning just wanting to hear background noise as she let her mind wander. The panicked voices of the newscaster had drawn her attention.

"_We have to warn our viewers, the content of the video may be too much for some. This was dropped off last night to our offices by known terrorist known simply as 'The Joker'."_

Tessa waited as the video began to play. The camera was roughly handled as it came into focus. She gasped at the face, it was most definitely the man she'd been dreaming about. He looked even stranger on the large screen. He moved to a chair and sat down.

"People of Gotham, it's me, your old pal Joker. _Now_, my last large experiment failed. It was _my_ fault." he frowned, placing his hand on his chest as if to apologize for his failure. "But _this_ time I have it all figured out. The crowd wasn't evenly split. This time though. This time is _better_. We will have your upper echelon of elected officials and white collar business _people _vs_. _the average folk of Gotham. The blue collar, 9-5 crowd. I have set up explosives at several facilities." He leaned forward in the chair, his elbow propped on his knees.

Tessa watched in fascination as he spoke, there was the choppy pattern, the lilts of his tone all mixed with the strange emphasis on the wrong syllables. The strangely melodic sound soothed her apprehension. She continued to watch, waiting until he spoke again.

"_Which_ facilities you ask?" he smiled. "Four _random_ elderly living facilities," he paused "_And_, four daycare facilities." the smile was gone from his face. "_Now,_ I know what you're thinking, why not just get your loved ones out? _Well_, I have my guys watching each place _closely_. If anyone other than the normal to and from crowd happen to leave..." He mimed an explosion. "Boom, they _ALL_ blow."

His laughter was horrible and beautiful to Tessa. She watched the his face, her mind numb to anything but him.

"But do not fear, you all have a chance to _save_ your loved ones. All you have to do... is storm City Hall. And I mean, I want to see _real_ destruction. I want the white collar crowd shaking in their tailored suits. I want to see _blood_ and _sweat_." he paused, like he was seeing it already in his head. " You have until..." He looked down at his watch. "4 PM to _burn_ the building to the _ground_." He laughed again as he got up to shut off the camera.

The video froze with a blurred up close photo of his face. Tessa hadn't realized she was crying until the hot tears hit her hands. This was the man she'd been dreaming of. This was the man that she had been sleeping with. Her stomach clenched. This was the man she loved.

She ran to the bathroom and emptied the contents of her belly. She stood, moving to the sink to brush her teeth and rinse her mouth.

...

* * *

...

Bruce was hurrying to the batcave. He moved to the computer and searched for the file. He found it and dialed the number. The ringing went on, no answer. He grabbed his cell phone and entered the number in his contacts. He left. He continued to call as he drove to Wayne Tower.

...

* * *

...

Joker sat in his office and watched the phone as it rang almost nonstop. He had a good feeling about this. He wanted batman to sweat it out for a bit before he would talk to him. He leaned back and rested his head on the back of the chair.

After only a few minutes, the ringing became annoying. He moved and grabbed the receiver.

"Hello?"

"Stop this now, this is wrong." the voice growled.

"_Who,_ may I ask, is calling?" He said then laughed.

"I know where she is."

Joker's laughing stopped abruptly. "_Well_, why didn't you just say so?"

Batman had his full attention now. "She's fine, I read her new file under the name Jane Doe. She has amnesia, she doesn't remember a lot. She's safe though."

Joker laughed. "That's good." he said, waiting for Batman to say exactly what Joker knew he wanted to say. The silence was beautiful. The line stayed silent for so long Joker was almost afraid that Batman had hung up on him, but the gravely voice finally sounded again.

"Stop this madness, I will bring her where ever you want. Just stop this."

"You think this business today has to do with _her_?" he laughed. "No, Batsy, this is for _you_. Only you." he hung up.

...

* * *

...

Batman threw his cell phone across the car in frustration. He may have to kill him to stop him. He felt the frustration build up in him. He wanted to be better than that. He wanted to be a hero, not a vigilante like the newspapers said.

He pulled into the parking garage at Wayne Tower. He got out of the car after retrieving his cell from the passenger floorboard. He pulled the suit jacket out of the back and slipped it on. This was his other mask. Playboy millionaire. Aloof trust fund brat.

Bruce Wayne had never felt so helpless in his life. It was daytime and Batman was a fugitive. He couldn't help. On the other hand, what help would a rich business man be? None. He felt the anger roll through him. Joker had crossed a line now. Bruce would use Tessa to draw him out and then he would end it. He had no choice. Joker would never stop.

...

* * *

...

Joker sat back in his office. So the Bat knew where his girl was. That was good and bad. Knowing the Bat, he would use Tessa to lure him into a trap. The man was so predictable. Joker was feeling delirious. He needed to sleep, he needed to get to work. He rubbed his face briskly to try to wake himself up, the city wouldn't destroy itself...yet. Joker sat on the couch of his room. He had decided to head home and watch the news until closer to the deadline. He hoped that the people could get through the police line. He was surprised at the show of force from the GCPD. He looked at his watch it was only noon. There was still plenty of time.

...

* * *

...

Tessa watched the news, she was watching the police keeping people from getting near City Hall. It was a mess. People detained, people hurt. The cops had dogs that would attack anyone who got through the first barriers. Tessa continued to watch, her mind detached from the entire ordeal. She felt disconnected from herself. She felt nothing. No fear, no sadness, no compassion. She watched with almost dead eyes.

When Tessa came back to herself, she, once again, felt like a passenger in her body. She had just been dropped off at a small building. Her body on auto pilot. She was walking away from the building, the street seemed familiar. She felt her body moving, and had no control of herself. She relaxed back into herself and let whatever force was pushing her along to lead the way.

A while had passed, she was bored, thinking whatever part of her was in control had no idea where they were going. Then she saw a long pier, a cold chill passed over her. That was where she drove into the water. That knowledge jumped into her mind from nowhere.

She calmed when they turned away from the docks, and headed down a different street. She felt that familiar feeling again. After a bit more walking she was in front of a building. She walked up to the door and opened it. It was dark inside, even though it was mid afternoon outside. She walked through the large part of the building and into a small kitchen. She laughed in her head as her body reached for the fridge and pulled out a bottled water. That simple gesture made her feel good. Whatever part of her in charge at the moment had some sense of self preservation.

She drank the water quickly, breathing heavily as she threw away the empty bottle. Her body turned and walked through the darkness and up the stairs. Deja vu hit her hard, she'd been here before, she's been on these steps before.

While her body was fine with this trip she was inwardly panicking. She couldn't stop her movements. She now stood in front of a door, she watched her hand raise and knock. The hand lowered back to her side and she stood there, waiting.

The door opened in a quick whoosh of air. Tessa felt her heart skip a beat or two. It felt lodged in her throat. He was there, in front of her, him. She felt the tears fall from her eyes. burning a trail down her face and catching on her lips. She could taste the saltiness.

He looked surprised, confused. His eyes were dark and locked on her.

"_Tessa_." he said.

Her body launched at him, she attacked his mouth, and growled at the taste of his grease paint. She'd missed this and hadn't even know it. She cried as she kissed him, biting along his mouth. He held her up, his hands cupping her ass, as she devoured him.

He moved back into the room and closed the door behind them. Tessa had her hands in his hair, and her legs wrapped around his waist. She still felt like a passenger in her body, but was enjoying this more than the walk here.

Joker moved her to the bed and tore her from his body. He didn't waste any time stripping her down to just her skin. He looked her over and frowned, She had lost a bit of weight, but that was normal if you spend any long amount of time in Arkham. He quickly disrobed and moved back to her.

Tessa pulled him flush to her body. His scarred chest against her, she wrapped her legs around him. He was inside her moments later, she nearly screamed from the brutality. He moved inside her, the pressure already starting to pool in her belly. He bit along her neck, the pleasure shooting through her like lightening.

She felt him lick across her carved 'J'. Tessa was feeling more connected with her body the closer she came to her orgasm. She ran fingernails down his back, causing Joker to pump into her quicker. His hands were all over, touching, pinching. She felt like it was becoming too much sensation after such a long time of literal isolation.

When her orgasm hit, she bit him on his shoulder, hard enough to taste blood. She heard him hiss, the pain pushing him to work harder. Joker moved his hand up and around her neck. He held her there, enough pressure to cause her eyes to get large.

He looked down at her. His hand on her throat, her eyes slightly panicked and his blood smeared all over her mouth. He kissed her as his orgasm took him over and he emptied his soul into her warm body. He collapsed next to her.

The last few days of no sleep caught up to him and he fell asleep almost immediately. Tessa lay there next to him. She was unsure what had just happened. She was back in control of herself. It had happened sometime in the middle of their tryst. She felt amazing. She shouldn't, she knew she should feel sick. She got up from the bed and moved to the bathroom.

She winced as she started to pee. The entire area was tender. She finished and moved to wash her hands. She had bite marks all over her, most would vanish soon, but two had drawn blood. She had a few hickies too. She frowned. Then she saw her face. She had flashbacks to this exact bathroom, she painted her mouth just like this. Only this time it was blood.

She felt slightly panicked as her hand raised to one of her bite marks, squeezing until the blood flowed again. She used the deep red as finger paint. She wrote a quick message on the mirror. She had to get out of here, she needed to think.

Joker woke and groaned aloud. He looked around and realized he was naked, then he remembered Tessa had come back. He jumped out of the bed and looked around. She was gone. The only traces of her were the scratch marks down his back and the large, scabbed up bite mark on his trap muscle.

He moved to the bathroom to relieve his bladder and froze. On the mirror written in blood was a message for him.

~XoX0 T.~

He laughed. She had lost her mind. He looked at his watch and frowned. He needed to get cleaned up. He had a half hour until the deadline.

* * *

**Only a few chapters left... **


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: One chapter left after this... eek...**

* * *

_~There's a devil waiting outside your door_,

_And he's weak with evil,_

_And broken by the world,_

_He's shouting your name, _

_And asking for more,_

_There's a devil waiting outside your door~_

_~Metallica~_

* * *

Joker stood at the top of an apartment building. He watched the chaos. The crowd had tried, he liked that. The GCPD had pulled all the stops to make sure the good people of Gotham couldn't get near anyone inside. That made him frown and feel a bit giddy inside too.

He smiled as he checked his watch. Five minutes until the show. He felt the excitement move through him. The tape he had recorded for _this_ outcome was being delivered to the new stations. He moved to the edge of the building and sat, letting his legs dangle over the edge. He waited patiently as the seconds ticked by.

The crowd was screaming at the police line. They were showing _real_ spirit. Joker felt good. He reached into his pocket and grabbed the detonator. He held it in his hands, the excitement building in his gut. He flipped the red plastic protector up and place his thumb on the detonator button.

He moved his thumb testing the squishy rubber. He checked his watch and smiled. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, he pressed the button. The quick silence made his stomach clench in anticipation. The explosion that followed was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen.

Joker watched as City hall was a mess of brick and fire. The explosion had taken out the entire bottom half of the building. The top floors collapsed down to a large pile pf rubble. The back side of the police force was dead, some still burning. The outer edge were knocked down, along with the crowd. The silence was deafening, and then the ringing started.

Joker was up on the roof of the building, smiling as he looked down on the destruction he had caused with a push of a button. The city had no idea what had just happened. He let the endorphins course through his system. He sat there, continuing to watch the chaos below.

...

* * *

...

Tessa was watching the news again. The deadline was approaching. She watched seeing what would happen. There was no way the police were letting the people through the line. When four P.M. hit she breathed a sigh of relief. She thought everyone was in the clear, then the windows in her room shook. The television went black.

She moved to the balcony, stepped out and looked to the large black cloud rising in Downtown Gotham. There was only one very large area. Tessa had expected eight, the people had not gotten the building burned to the ground. They had failed, though not from lack of trying. She frowned, this wasn't right. The power had come back on at the hotel. Tessa turned the television back to the news channel. They were already talking about the explosion. The reported was darkened by dirt and blood from the explosion. She was talking loud, like she couldn't hear herself. Tessa fought with herself to not smile at the silliness of it.

"_We are reporting live at what was once Gotham City Hall. The building has been leveled by a demolition style explosion. There have been several fatalities confirmed and an unknown number of injured. The reports of how many government employees were inside the building as it was attacked."_

Tessa sipped a glass of water and fought to swallow. The cool liquid refusing to go down.

_"__We now have a recorded message from the criminal Joker, who as claimed responsibility for this act of terrorism."_

The video began, it was a bit different from the last one. Joker had his grease paint done a little nicer, cleaner look to it. He looked happy. Tessa caught herself smiling as he moved back from the camera. He cleared his throat and started.

"People of Gotham, it's _me_ again. I must say, I am very _proud_ of you all. You _tried_ your hardest, and look, it paid off. You all made me very proud. Proud enough to take care of it _for_ you. The white collared men _and_ women, refused to allow you to do what was necessary to save your families. They new that you were all _trying_ to save the innocent and most _helpless_ of us all." he paused for effect.

"But never _fear_, I have heard your _pleas_ and decided to help you _all_. I took the matter into my own hands and punished them _for_ you. Your families are safe, they are free and clear." he smiled, gesturing with his hands.

"The suits inside that building were more than willing to let _your_ families die. They do not care about any of you. All _I_ wanted to do, is enlighten you. You can trust me, I am a man of my _word_."

The tape ended and the reporter came back on the screen. Tessa watched the movements but didn't hear a word. She stood from her bed and walked to the large bathroom. She moved to the large jacuzzi tub and started running herself a bath. The water was hot as she slid her body into it, clothes still on. She slid down the entire way water up over her head.

She opened her eyes, the water amplifying the sound of her heartbeat. She held her breath, feeling the burn in her chest. She felt the hurt move through her until she screamed. The water caught the sound, only a few bubbles floating to the surface. She burst through the surface and gasped in several breathes. She felt much better. She stood from the tub and striped her clothes off. She relaxed back into the water.

...

* * *

...

Bruce Wayne stood at the top floor of Wayne Tower. The black smoke slowly turned to gray and then finally white. He didn't know what to do. He should have guessed the Joker had planned to blow the building the entire time. It is what made sense. It was all a smoke screen for the destruction.

He had to stop him, Batman would have to cross _that_ line. He will have to kill this madman. Joker was right all along. He hated him for it. He had to use the girl. He had already found out the girl's room number, he decided tonight he would go as Batman to talk to her. Explain that he needed her to draw the Joker out into the open.

He turned to leave the office, traffic was going to be ridiculous. He hurried out and to the garage. He pushed the limits of his latest sportscar and moved straight to his batcave. He moved to get ready. He headed to the girl's hotel as soon as night hit. He pulled the car into the alley beside the building. He moved from the darkness and looked up to the third floor, counting over he shot the grappling hook up and lifted from the ground. He landed on her balcony and moved to open the sliding door.

The girl was sitting in the small sofa. The room was dark and she was staring off into space. Bruce walked over to the girl.

"Tessa Marlin?"

Her head snapped to the side, eyes locked on his.

"I need your help. Have you seen what happened today? I need your help to stop the man who did that."

She didn't even blink. Her gaze was unnerving, but she still didn't speak.

"He wanted me to get you out of Arkham, but you were released before I could rescue you. He called you a friend. A best friend. I need you to help me. He's got to be stopped. I will stop him, but I need you to get him out of wherever he is hiding." Bruce felt desperate by now.

The girl still hadn't said a word. Bruce moved to the balcony. He was arguing with himself, he would have to take her by force if she wouldn't come along. The girl startled him by moving up next to him.

"Will you help me?" He asked

She didn't say a word but nodded. The movement was slight, but enough. Batman grabbed her.

"Hold tight."

He launched them out of the balcony and down to the street. He led them down an alley and to his ride. They climbed inside and Batman sped out of the alley and into the night. The girl stayed silent the short ride to the building. She only stared at the road ahead.

When they arrived at building Joker had first approached Him. He grappled them up to the rooftop and pulled out his phone.

He dialed the number and waited. It rang six times before Joker finally picked up.

"Did you like your _gift_?" Joker asked.

"No, that was not a gift, it was a massacre." He spat back.

"Oh Batsy, one man's massacre _is_ another man's gift." He laughed.

"Joker you have to stop, just turn yourself in I will take you straight to Arkham."

"Boring! If you don't have anything new to _say_..." he trailed off.

"I have Tessa..."

Th statement made Joker feel weird. I weird mix of anger and rage and confusion. It was new, and strange. He liked it.

"_Why_ do _you_ have Tessa?" He asked, already knowing the answer. Just as he suspected batsy would be trying to get him.

"She wanted to see you but she was scared." Batman lied.

"She does?" Joker knew _that_ as a lie.

"Yes, I told her I would keep her safe."

Joker rolled his neck to the side, enjoying the loud crack of his neck. Batman has no clue that Tessa had come to see him earlier. He felt that excitement again. He could get his girl and play with the bat all at the same time.

"Ok batsy, I'll _bite_. Where should we meet?" He asked trying to sound bored.

"Same building you contacted me from."

Joker got a thrill from that. Batman was feeling sentimental. He really did care.

"Be there soon." He said and hung up the phone.

Batman stood on the roof and let his shoulders fall just a second. This was it. It was all part of the endgame. He reached to his side and put his hand on the gun. This was a horrible idea, but he had no other choice.

The girl still hadn't said a word. She sat there, watching the night sky. She was smiling now at least. Batman didn't know what to do until Joker showed.

"He's good to me." A small voice said.

Batman looked over to the girl. "He not a good man."

Tessa looked at him. "I know, but he's good to me." She said.

Batman couldn't believe the words he was hearing. "He's a murderer, he blew up a building full of people earlier today."

"I know, and I cried for each of them. They are gone now and so are the tears." she shrugged.

"Tessa, please, you have to stay away from him. He is never going to stop murdering people."

She nodded, "I know." She sighed. "You are going to kill him?" she asked.

"I don't want to. I really don't, but I know he will just escape again. He will just keep going." Batman rubbed his head through the cowl. He could feel the sweat in his hair. This night was giving him a bad feeling.

"I love him." the girl said.

Batman was lost. How could anyone love that monster? "Why?" he asked.

"I don't know, but you can't help who you love." she said, still staring at the stars. She turned quickly, "The stars were brighter while I was at Arkham."

Batman looked up and could see the few twinkling stars across the clouded night. He felt a sadness fill his chest. This would be not only the death of Joker, but the death of his own soul. He would never be the same after this.

The door to the roof slammed open and there he was. Joker stepped out onto the roof without a care in the world. He walked forward and smiled.

"There's my girl." he said smiling at Tessa. She stood and took a step towards the painted man.

"Tessa, No." Batman said, causing the girl to pause.

"Tessa, come here, show me you missed me." Joker said, his eyes on Batman. "He said you were scared of me, but we know that's not true, hmm?"

"No, I'm not scared of you." She said, stepping forward again.

Joker laughed, "Now Batman, ask her if she trusts me." he said.

Batman frowned, "Tessa, do you trust him." Batman slowly reached for the gun at his side.

She smiled at Joker, "Nope." she said, she was next to him. The Jokers laughter made her smile more.

* * *

**20 chapters down...one to go...**


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: this is it, I feel like it should end here. let me know what you think.**

* * *

_~It was a Monday when, _

_My lover told me,_

_Never pay the reaper with, _

_Love only,_

_What could I say to you, _

_except I love you,_

_And I'd give my life for yours.~_

_~Bif Naked~_

* * *

Tessa moved to Joker's side, she kissed his painted cheek. Joker had stopped laughing and waited for Batman to act. When he did nothing, Joker reached for Tessa and held her close.

"Tessa, move away from him, he and I have business to take care of." Batman told her. Joker laughed again.

Tessa looked over to Joker, he looked at her, brows raised in challenge. She reached up and grabbed his face, hands slightly smearing the grease paint. She kissed him, hard, biting his lip until she tasted blood, running her thumbs along his scars. She enjoyed the enthusiasm as he kissed her back, knowing it was mostly for show. She released his flesh when she heard him growl. She opened her eyes and saw him staring at her.

"He has a gun, he plans on killing you." she said softly against his mouth.

Joker was surprised by that news. He felt the adrenaline start to pump through his system. Batman was here to kill? This was it, _this_ is what all his work had been for. He gave her a small peck on the cheek and smiled.

"Don't worry about me, Doll, I can _handle_ the bat." he said, pushing her away slightly.

"_What_ can I do for you Batsy?" he said, "Since you gave back my _girl_, I am feeling _generous_."

"Go back to Arkham and stay there." he said.

"No can do." Joker frowned. "Any _other_ requests?" he paused watching the Bat. "Think about it, get back to me when you figure it out." Joker turned to leave.

"Stop, I can't let you go." Batman said, raising the gun.

"Are you flirting with me now Batsy?" he said laughing. Tessa held back a chuckle.

"This is it Joker, it's the end. I gave you every chance to do the right thing." Batman said.

"The right thing? What exactly _is_ the right thing? _Hmm_?"

Batman lowered the gun slightly. "Turn yourself in and quit this." he said.

Joker laughed and turned to leave again. "I've told you before, I will never quit."

"Then I have no choice." he raised the gun again.

Joker froze, he turned and locked eyes with the bat, "You gonna _shoot_ me? I was hoping for something a bit more personal." he shrugged. "Did I finally get you to that edge?" he smiled, "Are you ready to make that _choice_ and end it all?" he smiled again. "Could you _live_ without me?"

Batman continued to hold the gun up and kept it pointed at the Joker. He looked at the man, he needed to do it. He had to end this madness. The Joker had to be stopped.

"This is it Joker, I can't let you do this again. I have to finish all of this."

Tessa watched as the Batman's hand was shaking, the grip tightened on the gun. This was it, She smiled. She would be free of him. Free of the Joker for good. She watched the slight movement of Batman's finger on the trigger and Tessa made her move. She jumped in front of the Joker.

The impact felt like a shove, it didn't hurt. It was after, that Tessa felt the heat burn her through her back. Her weight caused Joker to fall back, she landed roughly on top of him. He grunted as his back hit the cement. She couldn't breathe.

"Jo- Jok." she tried to say his name but started to cough blood.

Batman was frozen. This was not right, it was supposed to be the Joker. She wasn't supposed to get hurt, she was supposed to stay out of the away. He had told her he was going to kill Joker. He dropped the gun, the clattering loud and stood there, watching them.

Joker moved, Tessa clutched onto him, he lifted her up. "Tessa, you crazy, _stupid_ girl. What did you _do_ that for?"

"You had to live, the city needs you." she said then coughed more blood. When she caught her breath she continued. "I'm broken, I can't do any of this anymore. I love you and now you can have more fun with him. Don't waste it." she said.

Joker scowled at the girl in his arms, she was confessing love while choking on her own blood. Joker smiled. He kissed her softly and held her close until she eventually stopped breathing.

He let her body slide to the ground and stood up. Batman was still there, frozen in place. Joker watched him, unsure what he planned to do now. _This,_ Joker hadn't accounted for and he didn't have a clue how the bat would take his fall from grace. Joker had always assumed _He'd_ be the one Batman killed and wouldn't get the _pleasure_ of dealing with all of this.

"Well, Batsy, you killed my, _uh_, lady friend. She was just starting to understand it all. She was almost perfect."

He glanced back at Tessa's body. He felt his chest hurt, now was the time for fun. If he was lucky, the bat was primed for murder. He looked back at the man dressed as a big black bat.

The Joker shrugged his shoulders and smiled, "What do we do now?"

That must have been the magic word. Batman launched himself at Joker. The sheer force of Batman's punches knocked the breath from him. He laughed inwardly, _this_ was the madness of the bat. This was the _real_ Batman and Joker loved it.

Joker didn't _really_ fight back, just dodging a few hits, he was curious if the Bat would kill again. He grunted through the punches to his face and the kicks to the ribs. The Bat wasn't letting up. _Good_. Joker wanted him to lose it. This would be _so_ much better than Harvey Dent.

...

* * *

...

Joker must have lost consciousness at some point. When he woke up, he was looking at bright lights and couldn't move, not that he wanted to, his entire body was in pain. He groaned, he coughed and had to turn her head to spit the bit of blood that came up.

He tried to look around and cringed, everything was white and sterile looking. He frowned, the disappointment flooded through him. Batman dropped him off at Arkham. He'd recognized the smell anywhere. He closed his eyes and listened closely.

He could barely hear the whir of the A/C in the room. He heard no screaming. He was still in the medical ward, but he was all alone. Good, he needed time to think about what he was going to do. Tessa's sacrifice had been _beautiful_. She gave him a _new_ purpose. He knew now that Batman was a murderer, and now he had the chance to enjoy the knowledge. He could use it against Batman. Salt in the wound kind of deal.

He smiled, causing a scab on his lip to split open. He licked at the wound and let his mind wander. Maybe Tessa did really _love_ him. The though made him want to vomit. _Love_ was a human construct. He wanted nothing to do with _love_. He wasn't sure how long he'd been lost in thought, but he was pulled back by the familiar click clack of his favorite doctor's shoes. No one else in this drab place wore _those_ kind of shoes.

The door opened and there she was. She stood there as he watched her. She looked angry, then sad. She rushed over to him and started checking him over.

"What did he do to you?" she poked and prodded along his broken body. She continued talking, not waiting for any kind of answer. "Mr. J, I can't believe he would do this. He should have been arrested as soon as he came to drop you off. I just got here and heard you were back. He brought you in last night. They had you in here all night. You have them all too spooked to check on you."

Joker stayed quiet and let the woman prattle on. He didn't have anything to say at the moment. He watched her fuss over his wounds. He _kind_ of liked that. He winced a bit louder to get the sympathy levels up, maybe she would help him, _again_.

She marked on his file and continued talking. Joker listened off and on. When she finally finished, She looked at him. "I'm going to unstrap you, but you gotta play nice." she said.

He just looked at her. She took that as a good sign and began to remove his restraints and help him sit up. This one was definitely out of her mind. He groaned at the pain in his ribs. _That_ was never a fun recovery. He sat up straight and moved his arms and legs. They hurt but it was manageable.

He finished his stretch and looked at the doc. She was standing in front of him, eyes wide. He decided to give the girl a chance. He didn't forgive her, but he would be bored without her. He gave in and decided to use his charms.

"Hiya doc."

She smiled. "I missed you. Why didn't you contact me?" She asked.

"I was _busy_, baiting the bat, did you see my work of art?" he asked, face serious.

"Oh, I saw it." she said.

"What did you think doc?"

"I think you need rest, don't worry I will take care of you." she said.

Joker frowned, he hated this place. "I'm _not_ tired Doc, I just woke up." she frowned right back at him.

"Joker, I need you to trust me."

"No, _Harley_, I need _you_ to trust _me_." he said.

She moved forward. "I do trust you, implicitly." She said.

Joker looked at her. He smiled, while inwardly loathing her. Of course she trusted him. She was an idiot. He planned on hurting her for keeping Tessa in here, but not before she helped him out of here.

"_Good_, I'm glad. Once I'm all patched up, you and me Doc, _we_ are gonna get out of here." he said.

Her eyes lit up and she moved forward to kiss him. She pushed into the kiss and he let her. He didn't really _want_ to kiss her, but she was part of the plan now. She pushed away and he saw the blood on her lip. Her pupils were blown wide and she smiled.

He looked at her, really looked. She _was_ pretty, in the blonde hair blue eyed way. She was the complete opposite of Tessa. Maybe that was what he needed. A leggy blonde to ruin. He smiled at her.

"There's my girl."

* * *

**That's all folks...**

**I want to thank the readers who have stuck with me through the entire story. I love you all. **

_**Guest reviewer**_

_** Nameless Fable **_

_**Cassie-011 **_

_**OodWhovian **_

_** Nier Caelum**_

** Y'all are my fucking heroes. I do not get paid for this stuff, I just start writing and let the story take me where ever it wants. Sometimes it's good, sometimes it's really weird. I love you all for letting me get it all out of my head. With that said, feel free to contact me if you had any unanswered questions. I will answer them, though between work and kids (and my weird bouts of mental issues) It may not be right away. You can leave any questions as a review or PM me. Thanks again guys and gals.**

**P.S.**

**look out for my next Joker/OC story. It's...different. I'm only a few chapters into writing it, but they are larger chapters. Not sure when I will post, but soon, I can't, _NOT _write.**

* * *

**This is the list of the songs I quoted on each chapter**.

_Chapter 1: Bat Country - Avenged Sevenfold_

_Chapter 2: Dangerous Night - 30 Seconds to Mars_

_Chapter 3:Coming Undone - Korn_

_Chapter 4: Unfaithful - Rihanna_

_Chapter 5: She Loves Me Not - Papa Roach_

_Chapter 6: Bad Things - Machine Gun Kelly_

_Chapter 7: Bat country - Avenged Sevenfold_

_Chapter 8: Wildest Dreams - Taylor Swift_

_Chapter 9: Roots - In this Moment_

_Chapter 10: Necessary Evil - Motionless in White_

_Chapter 11: Control - Puddle of Mudd_

_Chapter 12: Clean - Taylor Swift_

_Chapter 13:You don't Know How It Feels - Tom Petty_

_Chapter 14: Run for Your Life - The Beatles_

_Chapter 15:Dirty Little Secret - The All-American Rejects_

_Chapter 16: End of All Days - 30 Seconds to Mars_

_Chapter 17: Movies - Alien Ant Farm_

_Chapter 18: Coming Undone - Korn_

_Chapter 19: Everytime - Britney Spears_

_Chapter 20: Loverman - Metallica_

_Chapter 21: Lucky - Bif Naked_


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